


The Beast You Made Me

by Friendlylycanthrope



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Adora is like the sun, Big Lesbian Energy, Eventual Glimmer/Catra/Adora, F/F, Gen, Glimmer is like the moon, Horde Vampires, I think that the moon is a lesbian and the sun is her butch girlfriend, I'm not good at titles, Multi, Non-Graphic Violence, Rebellion werewolf pack, Slight Violence, Swearing, Vampire AU, Vampire Feeding, Werewolf AU, and Catra is like the earth, nongraphic blood drinking, soup related discourse, werewolves vs vampires au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:21:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 70,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24373462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Friendlylycanthrope/pseuds/Friendlylycanthrope
Summary: In a world plagued by violent, greedy vampires, only the werewolf Pack of Bright Moon can stop them. Adora is selected to be turned into a vampire, but soon learns the harsh truths about the clan that raised her, and it causes a schism between Adora and her oldest friend. Adora turns to the Pack for help, and Catra has important decisions to make.
Relationships: Adora/Catra, Adora/Catra/Glimmer (She-Ra), Adora/Glimmer
Comments: 81
Kudos: 348





	1. Everything Changes

**Author's Note:**

> This is a Werewolves VS. Vampires AU that was inspired by the artwork of ArtOfKace.tumblr.com. Fanfic was made with permission of the artist. Check out these cool arts:  
> shorturl.at/rtyIJ  
> shorturl.at/dfuO2

  
  


Under the light of the sun, it was hard to think of anything changing. Adora leaned on the metal railing, and inhaled the morning smells of the Fright Zone. The sun glowed orange on the horizon, the beginning colors of morning reflecting radiantly on the hot green metals of her home. Adora had to squint against the light to make out the shape of the moon over its shoulder. A pale and small comparison next to its celestial sibling, but all as much powerful if not in wane. While one used its power to give them strength, protection, the other used its power to remind them that they were vulnerable, not invincible. 

Well, maybe not for her specifically. Not yet anyway. But... soon. Things were going to change. 

Even though she worked towards it her whole life, it seemed daunting now that it was actually here. She didn’t know much, but she knew that things would be different. 

_ “Adora, listen to me.”  _ Shadow Weaver had told her a few hours ago. She reached out to Adora’s face and barely touched her skin with an icy hand. The contact made Adora’s skin crawl every time.  _ “I know that you have reservations. But you must become the warrior that I raised you to be. This is what you were made for.” _

The sun chased away the cold ghost of a touch on her cheek, but not the discomfort of the memories that Adora had of her meeting with her superior. But Adora was strong, and she did what she always did; tried her best to prove her place here. To earn the respect of her elders. She endured grueling training, nocturnal hours, and years of hardship just so she could repay Shadow Weaver the kindness of sparing her life when she was found as a helpless infant. She had to show that she was worth more now. And it worked. She had arrived at her destination. 

But... Why did that leave an uncomfortable sensation crawling across her skin?

_ “Everything will be different.” _ Her mentor had warned her.  _ “It’s going to seem like your whole life has changed. But this is all a part of the plan, my Adora.” _ Adora remembered looking out a window at the moon, just seven days from full. She felt scared.  _ “Is this not everything that you have wanted, since you were old enough to want anything?” _ To have the courage to defeat her foes. To have the strength to protect her friends. To have the agility to never be hurt again. 

_ “Yes... _ ” Adora whispered. 

The reason that she endured so much with the Crimson Horde, the reason that she needed to be stronger, was not for her. Maybe it was to Shadow Weaver, but for Adora, she had other motives for her promotion. She did it all for---

“Hey Adora.” Catra’s words behind her startled Adora, but she calmed as soon as she saw the other woman approaching behind her. She smiled softly at how the warm tones complimented the darker earth tones of her skin, making her radiant. Would she miss the sunlight?

Catra smirked, one hand on her hip as she stood in the doorway. She calmly sauntered out to the balcony with Adora, stretching her arms over her head and yawning. Her hair was still unbrushed and fell in curls around her sharp face, matching the tone of the freckles that spotted her face. 

“What are you still doing up? It’s past sunrise.”

Adora took a deep breath and resumed looking out over the landscape she called her home. It never really clicked in a meaningful way for her, unless Catra was around to make it feel a little more like home. She was hoping to get that sense of belonging now that she had the news. 

“Shadow Weaver wanted to talk to me.” She said quietly, averting the gaze of mismatched eyes that bore into her back. “She said… that now is a good time. For me to make the change... I’m going to be the next vampire candidate.” 

“Wait, really?” Catra squeaked in a high pitched voice in her excitement. Her eyes lit up as she seized Adora by the shoulders. “She seriously said that?”

“Heh, yeah.” Adora slid out of Catra’s firm grip and smiled at her oldest friend. She tried to think about the great strength and vigor she could soon have. She tried harder not to think of one of her elders biting their teeth into her neck, sinking their fangs into her skin.

“Wait so... what’s wrong? Why are you out here, then?” Catra asked, becoming more serious again. One blue eye and one yellow eye flicked over Adora’s body in careful scrutiny. She always was the smart one between the two of them. Adora rubbed the back of her neck.

“I guess I just wanted to see the sunlight. Before everything changes. I think I might miss it.” So much was going to change. How could she give up ever seeing the sun? But looking back to Catra, she tried to bite back her worries. 

“Booooo, you sound like you’ve gone soft.” Catra teased, lightly shoving her. She then relaxed to join Adora in looking out at the sunrise over their home. Normally they would be asleep by now, getting to bed after a long night of training. They had to adapt to the nocturnal habits of their superiors from an early age, and they rarely got to see the sun in the darkened halls. 

Adora tore her eyes away from the harsh light of the sun to look at her oldest friend beside her. She couldn’t admit that she was scared, but she had a feeling that Catra knew. She always knew what was up with Adora. 

Catra leaned on the railing with her elbows, and yawned again. Her athletic build was never quite as bulky as Adora’s, more of a lithe and flexible shadow, but she was just as strong. Adora admired the beautiful curve of her spine and thought not for the first time that Catra would make an incredible vampire. Her physique already matched the sort of agility and control that their superiors praised, even though they still treated Catra like a servant. The threat of becoming a service member was ever present in their minds if they failed to meet the expectations of their tests, something they both strived to outdo. It was either janitorial or vampire elite, and blood bank while they waited to figure out which. But she knew that Catra would do well if they competed against each other, and one day they could both gain the gift of immortality, together, as they did all things. 

At least she had hoped. 

She had to tell herself that the pain would be worth it. That she could convince the other vampires above them to turn Catra as well. There was no way she could go through with it otherwise, thinking that she would have to suffer in longevity without Catra. Even if it meant trading the whole sun and moon to be by her side, Adora would do it. Even if it meant not seeing the orange rays of light illuminate her wild curls of dark hair around her face like a halo. Even if it meant not seeing the warmth kiss each freckle on her face. She would do it. 

“When?” Catra asked without lifting her eyes to Adora. Adora was startled once again from her dark thoughts and took a second longer to respond. 

“In a few days...” Adora answered. 

“Is it gonna hurt?” Catra asked, chancing to avert her eyes up to Adora without moving her head from the sun. 

_ “It will be painful at first.” _ Shadow Weaver had warned her.  _ “But I know you are up for it. _ ”

“I--I don’t think so.” Adora lied to brush off her friend’s concern. 

_ “It will feel like being split open and burning through your veins. You may feel like you are dying. But this will all fade away and leave behind you and your new form.” _ Adora gulped nervously. 

“First they want to send me out on a mission.” Adora said. She gripped the pipe of the railing to steady her shaking hands. It felt like they wanted her to die. She didn’t want to die. “Tomorrow night. I have to go find a town… a tails town.” The Crimson Horde had a running joke of heads versus tails. Tails referred to the barbaric animals that controlled the places that they, the Heads, did not. They were always skirmishing for more land, and sometimes the elite power of the Heads won, while others, the tails took. “I don’t know much but I think that it has something to do with some sort of tradition for turning someone.”

Catra scoffed, then stood up tall. 

“They’re hazing you.”

Adora’s face turned red and she squared her shoulders. 

“I--- they are not!” She insisted, flustered at how Catra could make something so daunting sound so childish in so few words. “It’s important--- they--- it is  _ not _ hazing! It’s gotta be important to the ritual somehow!” Catra laughed as she wrapped an arm around Adora’s taller, broader shoulders. 

“Oh they are totally hazing you!” She joked, and play-punched Adora in the gut. The latter rolled her eyes and slid out of Catra’s grip, only to playfully shove her back. They playfully pushed each other around while laughing for a minute more, before Catra surrendered in Adora’s grip. She was in a perfect two-handed head lock under the blonde, and even though she was totally at Adora’s mercy, she felt exhilarated to be held so close to so much muscle. 

“Okay fine, whatever.” Catra’s tone was exasperated but she smiled with bright teeth, reminding Adora again of her fate. “Can we go to bed already? It’s way too early for this.”

In response, Adora released Catra and walked back to the door. Inside, they would be met with sterile white lights on cool green metals, but that was a sacrifice she had to make. One of many. 

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


_ “Everything is coming together at last, my Adora.” _ Shadow Weaver’s words were a whisper in real life, but screaming in her mind.  _ “Do  _ not _ lose this chance.” _

She didn’t want to do this. Not without Catra. She didn’t want to feel death take her, even if it was temporary. 

But she had to. She needed to be stronger. She needed to be faster. She needed to protect Catra and herself from the threat to their land. And she would do anything to be stronger. 

Which is why she was walking through the forested area known as the Whispering Woods. The foliage was dense overhead, almost completely blocking out the sky in vines and moss across the branches that were already heavy with leaves. Adora did what she always did, and she was strong. Strong enough to push away her fears and work towards her mission, not letting anything else cloud her mind. 

It was easier to think about the danger that lurked in every corner rather than to think about the danger that lurked at home. 

The soft blues and greens of the woods around her were nothing like her home. Where she once became familiar with right angles and straight lines, now she was in a kaleidoscope of twisted shapes and new colors, swooping landscapes and even wild animals. Adora stopped every time she heard a sound nearby, not moving until it was safe, but soon realized that this method was slowing her down. She had a deadline. So, she pushed through the undergrowth and focused on finding the village.  _ Be strong. For Catra. We must be strong... We must be brave... _

Rebel wolves could hide anywhere in this forest… the wildlife suited them perfectly, Adora realized. They had been told about the werewolves that lurked outside the Crimson Horde. They were vicious animals, hunting down people and vampires alike. As an Apex predator with no natural predators above them, their power had gotten out of hand and they needed to be stopped. She would shake in her bed as a little girl after being told stories of the hairy monsters that would gobble her up if she wasn’t good. 

That’s why she had to find the village. To be strong enough to not have to worry about them any more. She swatted another branch out of the way in frustration. 

Would she be seen as a failure if she couldn’t find the village?

It had been hours into the night now and still her search was fruitless. She growled in frustration when she came back to a spot she had marked. Marked because she had passed it three times already. 

It was close to midnight now, and not only that but the moon was full. She didn’t have all night to find the village. It was dangerous here and she needed to become a vampire tonight, or Shadow Weaver would never let her live it down. 

She was alone in this clearing, and the lack of trees for several yards made the sky more visible. She calculated her place and the cardinal directions based on the stars when she marked the boulder with an X. But what good was it if the woods would just turn her around again?

A rustle in the ferns caught her attention. Adora went back to her first routine and froze in place, not moving a muscle. She cursed herself for being out in the open, exposed on all sides as her eyes nervously glanced in the darkness to find its source. The light of the full moon was illuminated like hollow beams of light by the swirling dust in the air, and Adora could hear nothing but the pounding of her own heart in her ears. Another rustle came from the same direction, closer this time. 

Her breath did not come easily to her. Sweat formed on her brow and she strained to see in the bushes what challenge the woods would bring her. Would she be able to fight them off without being turned first?

The moonlight reflected on the shape of two eyes in the darkness before the wind picked up and the clouds obscured the moon. Adora gasped as they vanished again to darkness, and soon the whole valley was under the fog of darkness. 

The attack came in a flash of pink, and Adora was instantly knocked onto her back into the cold ground. There was a heavy weight on her chest, then it leapt off when Adora automatically started swinging her fists, getting just out of arm's reach. The clouds passed, and Adora beheld her worst fear realized as she sat up in the dirt.

Before her was a growling werewolf, one of shining pink fur and snarling full of sharp teeth. Her pastel fur stood on end and her tail upright in the air. Purple eyes burned through her confidence as though she were glaring at Adora’s soul. There was no other way out of it now, she would have to fight it. 

“Rraauggh!” She screamed as she lunged forward, hands outstretched. Her attack was cut off when another attacker came at her from the side, and again knocked her to the ground. 

_ Two?! _ She realized in panic as she spun away from the hard landing, the second wolf skidding to a stop in the dirt. He was a darker brown wolf, much harder to spot than his bright pink and purple companion. Adora’s mind raced as she realized that on the full moon, she might have wandered into the territory of a whole pack. If that was the case, she didn’t stand a chance. One maybe, but a pack?

She didn’t show her fear.

She hastily kicked out the legs of the brown wolf, tripping him to give her the seconds needed to get on her feet. He was fast to recover, and the two wolves surrounded her in front and back, growling loudly. They were bigger than she thought they would be, at least as tall as her at full height. Underneath their pelts was several hundred pounds of muscle, all wound tight as a spring in preparation to brawl her.

Why hadn’t her superiors given her any weapons for the journey? If only Catra were here---

_ Focus! _

She went for the taller of the wolves, though his fur was shorter he was certainly bigger than his pink friend. He flinched to move out of the way, but too slowly, and she clocked his jaw. She had to jump backwards to avoid his snapping teeth at her hand a second later. 

He didn’t seem as good as his partner in combat, so Adora tackled him down, and they rolled in the dirt in ferns until she fully grappled him on the ground. But now that she was vulnerably wrapped up, the pink one struck again, lunging for Adora’s back with her teeth. 

Adora ducked out of the way just in time, releasing the brown wolf in the process. Thank heavens they were slow enough for her to evade, but she was still outnumbered. 

Suddenly her leg was pulled away from under her by the lighter wolf, and she was dragged away on her stomach, flailing uselessly.

Her boot was dropped and Adora instantly rolled around to her back, and reached into her jacket. She barely had any time to throw the bola rope at the fluffier wolf before the other one was swatting her down with his paws again. She couldn’t see the results of her throw, but could hear the wolf make a surprised yap followed by a heavy thud.

Adora lifted her legs and kicked upwards into the jaw of the brown wolf that held her down. The brown one abandoned Adora to help his pack mate. Adora scrambled up and didn’t turn to look at the tangled legs of the creature before she took off running. 

But they broke out quicker than she thought --- _ damn teeth! _ She thought as they caught up--- and soon were on her again, chasing and trying to bite at her legs. She didn’t dare look over her shoulder at the pink monster that pursued her, but could feel her breath warm and moist on her calves, closer with every step. 

Eventually she tripped and fell over a steep ravine, sliding down the dirt much faster than she was running, before a rough landing at a more level area before it dropped off again.

One of the wolves howled out, probably signalling for the rest of their pack to come. Adora panicked and shakily got up and coughed the dust cloud she had created, and tried to get away. But as soon as she turned, the brown wolf was there, blocking her exit. She halted and gasped at the frightening thing before her. His legs were spread wide and his body low to the ground, ready to fight. His tail stood upwards and his ears pointed back as he pulled back his lips to snarl. His yellow eyes seemed to glow in the dark and a trickle of blood escaped his teeth. 

Adora quickly turned back the other way, but the pink one was there already, barely out of breath from the long run. She stalked closer to Adora and the latter was trapped, with a cliff up one side and a cliff further down on the other, the wolves had her cornered on the edge of a much more dangerous drop-off. Adora’s eyes nervously glanced around in desperation, she was totally alone and unarmed, there was only one thing she could do, even if it was stupid and dangerous.

The pink wolf stalked closer, reflecting the faintest hint of sparkles in the light of the moon as she backed Adora up into Bow. Now she was inches away, and Adora could smell the animal stink of her, one that she had previously never smelled, and could look into the hot fiery eyes that watched her. Adora took one deep breath for courage, and leapt to her side, and tumbled down the rocky cliff face. 

She heard a yip of surprise and a frustrated growl growing further away, and it was the last thing she remembered before she blacked out as she tumbled down the rocks.

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Adora was aware that she had a massive headache. That was the first thing she felt as she started to wake up. 

She tried to move to a more comfortable position, but found herself restrained. She groaned painfully at the aches that bruised all over her body. She blinked open her eyes foggily to bright daylight, and curving blues and greens. Her eyes flew open in panic as soon as she recognized where she was. 

The mission. The wolves! She looked down and found her hands tied together tightly. 

“She’s awake!” A man yelled right next to her face all of a sudden. Adora flinched away from the sudden loud sound next to her ear. He was dark skinned with short hair that was dark brown, matching his wide eyes. He wore white and gold but it failed to cover his abdomen, and there was even a big red heart sewn over his chest. 

To her other side, Adora could hardly take in the person on her right. She was bright colors and sparkled with light. She was the first person Adora had ever seen that had pink hair, and her clothes were more like flowing robes that had been cut short to allow her easier movement. Her face was much more furious looking, but was softened by the smooth and curved features of her face. These must have been the two werewolves that she faced…

“What happened,” She asked, wincing at the pain in her head that flared up like a knife wound when she spoke. 

“Quiet, prisoner!” The pink one yelled at her, standing up to tower over her. “I’ll ask the questions here!” She tried to sound threatening, but Adora hardly thought twice about it. She had been raised by Shadow Weaver, a centuries old being who had mastered every art of combat and science to bend the world to her will. This soft young woman could hardly hold a candle to her threats. 

“How did you get this far into the woods?” She asked, glaring through Adora’s calm and alarming her from her thoughts. 

“I just... walked in?” She explained with as much of a shrug as she could manage while bound up. 

The boy also stood up, and went to stand next to his friend. He was several inches taller than her, but seemed more neutral about the information than her. Adora decided he couldn’t be much of a threat --between the big heart and his exposed abdomen he didn’t seem the violent type-- and focused back on the shorter woman. She was a threat to Adora right now, but she couldn’t stop taking in her simple and roguish beauty. She looked like she had seen some tough things, and was prepared for anything, even though she seemed completely non threatening in her human form in the daylight. 

“Right, sure.” The girl laughed sarcastically, reminding Adora of Catra. Would she be worried about her being gone all night? Would anyone look for her? Had she failed her superiors’ test? “You just wanted to take a walk right into pack territory. Makes total sense!” She threw her arms up in exasperation. She leaned down closer to Adora’s face as she growled out her next words, and it sounded almost half animal in her throat. “The woods are Pack territory. You’re lucky you made it as far as you did.” 

“I was trying to find a village.” Adora said. It wasn’t technically a lie, maybe they would think she was just a harmless traveler. 

“Trying to take your vampire friends there?” The woman asked her, crossing her arms. 

“How do you know my friends are vampires?” Adora challenged. 

“You reek of death.” She explained. The boy shook his head. 

“More like the smell of decaying fungus and dust mixed with vinegar. Classic vampire. And it’s all over you.” He said more helpfully. “Even though you don’t seem to be one.” Obviously, she would have shriveled up under the sunlight. Adora’s defeat weighed sorely on her aching chest, and caused her to lash out. 

“Well I  _ would _ have been turned last night, if you two hadn’t interfered!” She yelled at them, but mainly at the meaner one. A fire came to her eyes as she looked back at Adora. She kept her eyes on Adora while she spoke to her companion. 

“Why would you want to be a vampire?” The boy asked. “They’re the worst!”

“Maybe so I could fight off the  _ werewolves _ attacking my friends!”

“If anybody is attacking, it's the vampires!” The pink one yelled again. “They were mowing down innocent people, we were just defending!” She huffed. 

“The vampires would never hurt anybody!” Adora yelled, pulling against the binds on her wrists.

“Well that would be a first! Since when do vampires not want to hurt people!” She had to turn away and fume while she kicked a tree, before speaking to her companion.

“Come on Bow, let’s try to get her back to Bright Moon. This is going to be a huge advantage for the pack.” She smiled and Adora couldn’t help the gasp that escaped her at the sight of how big her teeth were. Big, and pointed. She wanted a closer look, a morbid curiosity pulling her gut rather than telling her that a closer look was the last thing she wanted. 

They pulled her to her feet, and started walking. The man kept a hand on her arm, firmly keeping her from running under strength that she underestimated. They began guiding her through the woods as her mind raced. 

She needed to escape somehow. It would be easier when they were both human in the daylight, but she had no idea what to expect of them or their powers. Would anyone come looking for her?

“Glimmer, do you know where we’re going?” Her captor asked.

“Trust me Bow, I know what I’m doing!” She insisted. So those were their names... it was unusual, none of the names in the Crimson Horde sounded like that. It was almost whimsical. Bow helped her step over a tall root while she struggled with the knots around her wrists. 

“Can you smell home from here?”

“Yes!” She protested, whirling around and stomping her foot. She just looked all the sillier the longer Adora looked, there was no way that she could be a threat like this, with her pink hair and sparkly clothes. She didn’t even look that strong, her exposed arms were smooth and free of the toned muscle that Adora was used to seeing in the barracks, and she couldn’t help but stare at the exposed skin. 

“It’s just hard when  _ she _ smells so much like a vampire!” They continued walking onward. 

“Sorry about Glimmer. She’s usually super fun.” Bow said, and Adora took a minute to realize that he was addressing her. “Not much of a talker, huh?”

Adora tested her limits in his reach by tugging slightly in his grip while making it look like she was avoiding a branch. But his grip was firm as iron. 

“I prefer not to swap pleasantries with my captors.”

“Well, what about your name?”

Name, rank, and position were the only three things she was allowed to disclose. They had warned her in classes that if she ever got captured, those were the only three things she could say.

“...Adora.” She said quietly. 

“That’s a cute name!” Bow gushed, causing Adora to blush. 

“No it’s not, it’s just my name!”

“It can be two things!”

They passed the time for many more minutes without a word between them. Glimmer marched ahead of them, and Bow led Adora behind. She had to find a way out, before these wolves made a meal out of her. She was told that they loved to gnaw on the bones of their enemies, an insatiable appetite tearing into mortal flesh whenever they saw it. She wasn’t sure how she had made it this far with them without eating her. What would Catra do?

“Do we  _ have _ to travel now?” Adora complained. “I mean it’s  _ mid day! _ ” Normally she would be asleep right now, away from the light of day. She was exhausted from being up so late past sunrise. 

“She kinda has a point.” Bow pointed out. “It would be way easier for us to travel at night too, you know.” Glimmer groaned at all the whining behind her. Adora realized that they must draw their power from the moonlight, and tucked it away for further use in her escape.

“Look, we can rest when we get to the village, okay?” Glimmer grumbled. “We can grab some food until night and take her back the easy way. But we have to get there first!”

Adora had no choice but to comply. She was dragged long through more of the woods, more than she thought could have existed, and wondered if this would be the same village that she was supposed to find last night. She thought of the strange nature of her captors, they seemed like they were close. It reminded her of herself and Catra. Catra... would she be alright without Adora around to keep her out of trouble when the sun set? She had done all of this, this stupid expedition just to go through a terrifying ordeal, for her. But there wasn’t much she wouldn’t do for Catra. 

They walked for hours under the grueling heat of the sun. Adora could feel the heat on her back and it felt so foreign, like some sort of new attack that she had to ward off. The sun crawled across the sky in an even line until it was directly overhead and Adora wanted so badly to go home and sleep the rest of the day. She had never stayed up this late. 

Her werewolf captors, on the other hand, seemed to be just fine with it. Even if they drew power from the moon, they were no strangers to the warmth of day. They navigated the forest with their superior senses with ease, smelling and hearing everything around them. Compared to them, Adora was flying blindly. Plus she was still outnumbered. But if she wanted to make a move, it had to be soon. During the night they would be stronger. And she, a strong-for-a-mortal-human, wouldn’t stand a chance. 

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Glimmer knew many things. As princess of a mighty pack, she was tutored and trained to be prepared for anything. She knew battle maps, and she knew her pack mates. She knew her own senses and knew that she could trust Bow to the end of the line. She knew the forest, she knew her territory, and she knew how to fight. 

What she did not know was why a human girl had the vulgar stink of vampires on her. 

This girl was something else. Was she completely blind? Did they really raise her to think this way? How was that possible when she was surrounded by leeches that caused nothing but death and despair? Vampire was synonymous with death in certain parts of the woods. They smelled like rotting corpses and vinegar. And this girl... well, she wasn’t a vampire herself, but she clearly lived with them. And that meant that she was on their side, which meant that she was a threat. 

Glimmer rubbed her bruises from the night prior at the memory of the fight she had put up. It healed faster, especially with the moon so close, but the bitterness of almost losing to some human blood bag remained in her mouth. 

She kept glancing back at Bow and Adora. They walked mostly quietly, though sometimes Bow would try to start up some conversation. Bless that man and his massive heart of gold. Was he really so desperate to be friends with the same people that they had to fight off? The same people that had killed her father? But no, he had to be liked by everyone. And what was worse, he seemed to actually be wearing Adora down a bit. She wasn’t stuck in a constant scowl anymore, and seemed to nod and listen to things he said even if she didn’t offer much in return. 

Glimmer growled in frustration, turning back to the path ahead of them. The sound came out of her voice in a purely canine manner, and she had to suppress her violent instincts. They would soon be at the village. 

“So you guys just... Stay awake? All day?” the soldier asked incredulously. Glimmer scoffed but Bow had a better answer. 

“Well not all the time.” He explained happily. “We go out during the day sometimes, if we want to. Of course not usually right after a full moon.” Glimmer wanted to kick him for divulging their secrets. 

Adora nodded in deep thought. She looked around the sunlit forest in wonder and awe while she digested the information. 

She knew of the effects of the sun on vampires. But did they even force their underlings to live under similar conditions? Had this girl never seen a daytime sun? It seemed... cruel. But Glimmer didn’t know what to think. After all, it wasn’t Adora’s fault. She was just raised that way. 

“Okay, here we are.” Glimmer announced. Ahead, they could see through the treeline to a small village where dozens of people were active. Adora seemed surprised to see so many of them going about their lives, and her eyebrows flew up as she watched children playing, merchants selling, musicians playing, all in the warm golden rays of the springtime sun. Glimmer turned to face Bow and Adora before heading into town. 

“Look, we’re just going to see if we can get a good meal for energy, maybe a ride at nightfall, okay? No sidetracks. So just don’t say anything or talk to anyone, got it?” She threatened. Adora looked at Glimmer with wide gray eyes, but clearly it had no effect on her. She frowned slightly, but Glimmer would need to show her that she meant business before she tried to escape in the crowds. “Got it?” She growled again, this time fully embracing her canine instincts as it escaped her throat. She sounded like a barking dog, and this time Adora nodded in wordless compliance. Glimmer had to turn away to casually brush her hair into place (no she was NOT blushing) while Bow untied her hands to not bring any suspicion before they could walk into town. 

“What is going on here?” Adora asked the closer they walked to the center of town. She had already failed her mission to lay low by gawking at every sight like a tourist with her mouth wide open. 

“It’s a spring festival.” Bow explained. “I think around here, they use it to celebrate the earth waking up from winter!”

Bow stopped walking when he realized that Adora had stopped just to fix him with a look of utter perplexity, with no sign of recognition. 

“You know, like a big party?”

Still nothing. Bow’s face suddenly turned downward in crisis as though his heart might break. 

“Do you guys not have  _ parties _ ?” Adora put a hand on her chin while she looked away to think about it. 

“Well we have raiding parties. But based on context I’m assuming it isn’t the same thing.” 

“Bow, we should focus on our mission.”

“Glimmer!” He pulled her into an embrace that was, just like Bow, full of warmth and softness. “Adora has never seen a party before!” Glimmer rolled her eyes. Had it not been for her supernatural strength, it would have been impossible to pry away from her best friend. 

“We have to lay low, we can’t draw any attention--” But before she could finish her sentence, she blinked and the two of them were gone. Bow was dragging Adora by the hand into the heavy throng of the festivities, and she growled again. She could feel the wolf instincts getting closer to coming out with every minute she spent with the horde soldier. It grew warm in her chest, wanting to reshape her into a stronger self, but she pushed it away. She was already low on energy from last night’s chase, and couldn’t waste it on annoying prisoners. That’s probably just what she wants!

Glimmer couldn’t stop Bow now that he was on a mission of his own; mission: show Adora how to have fun.

Glimmer knew many things. But she didn’t know anything about this girl. And she wanted to. She wanted to know why she inhaled all the food she was given as though she had never had real food before. She wanted to know what her favorite color was. She wanted to know how she got mixed up with such a bad crowd, being raised by vampires. 

Adora had an appetite that would give most werewolves a run for their money. That much was obvious from the way her eyes lit up like a kid when she saw any kind of food. 

“What, do they not feed you in the Crimson Horde?” 

Adora had to chew and swallow her latest victim, an apple turnover, before answering. 

“Sure, but not like  _ this! _ ” She responded happily. “No sunlight makes it hard to grow crops. It’s all artificial.” It was as though she had forgotten for a moment that they were sworn enemies, or that she was their prisoner. Was it possible that all of her previous attitudes had come from being hangry? 

“Wolves need to eat a lot too, especially after a full moon.” Bow said. “It takes a ton of energy to transform. So there’s always plenty of food on hand in werewolf territory. Especially if there’s a big party!” He handed Adora the rest of his cotton candy. She seemed perplexed. 

“Did... did you just give me Glimmer’s hair?” She asked. She tested the light pink material between her fingers, looking between it and Glimmer’s hair in confusion. Glimmer found herself blushing bright red at the comparison. Bow laughed. She was tempted to transform right there, despite it all, just to hide how flustered she was. 

Adora took a bite of the offered candy. Glimmer glared at Bow for no reason, perhaps for distracting them from their super important mission. But he just shrugged with a smile. 

There was a running joke, between the two of them now that had been going on for years. There’s a saying that for werewolves, they have a human brain and an animal brain, or wolf brain. It was a common colloquial term. But the joke between them was that Glimmer in particular, had a wolf brain and a lesbian brain. They were both thinking the same thing while they supervised Adora inhaling her sweet treat. 

Eventually they had to tear her away from the picnic table because she was drawing attention with her appetite. Glimmer hoped that none here were able to smell the vampire stink that still lingered on her and her clothes. 

Bow dragged the two of them to a bandstand, where a quartet was playing jaunty dancing music. Adora smiled wide with her mouth open at the delightful melodies. If Glimmer had her reservations about it before, she was sure now that Adora had all but forgotten about being held prisoner, she was totally enraptured by the music. She realized that Adora looked much more attractive when she was smiling, as opposed to the neutral or angry look she wore on the way here. She realized that she wanted to see that smile more in the future. 

Gods, what was she doing?

The sun was setting and soon they could drag this poor defenseless mortal to her kingdom in the heart of her pack’s territory, where they would punish her just for how she was raised. 

Bow put a flower in Adora’s hair while Glimmer munched on a turkey leg. She didn’t seem to notice at first, then seemed perplexed by the strange gesture, and Glimmer felt her chest becoming warm. This time, it wasn’t the warmth of wanting to let the wolf out.

She bit her tongue, something highly unusual for a fireball like Glimmer. 

They saw face painters. They looked at shops. The stars started to appear in the sky. They heard the stories from the elders. They saw street performers. And all punctuated by their quest for protein-rich foods. After a few hours, even Glimmer was warming up to the horde girl. She looked at her softly, but only when she was sure nobody, least of all the vampire wannabe, was watching her. 

Eventually the darkening sky settled over their heads and brought with it the cool smells and sounds of night. With the moon still offering so much power from last night’s full, the party only became more boisterous. Glimmer could feel the power running through her veins like how she could run through the woods with her paws barely touching the ground while she flew through the forest. It was begging to be let out, prickling at the underside of her skin with a warm sensation. She inhaled the night air deeply, relishing the cool night air like a high. Her eyes pierced through the darkness with ease. She could tell that Bow was feeling the same way, the return of strength with the moon.

It must have caught Adora’s attention, even as clueless as she was, for she hesitated and looked at them with her head cocked to the side. Glimmer hated that she thought Adora would make a good werewolf, and hated that it wasn’t the first time she thought of it that day. Her mannerisms just screamed canine sometimes, despite the smell of death on her. But that smell was fading. 

“Adora,” She said as calmly as she could, but the moon gave her power and it was present in the cool melodies of her voice. “Don’t go back to the horde.” 

Adora’s look went from confusion to something more defensive in an instant, like she was going to fight. She wanted to say something, but then the look deflated out of her like a balloon. She looked down at the ground while she rubbed her neck. Glimmer didn’t know what to make of it, but fortunately Bow was ready to pick it up for her. 

“You don’t have to turn into a vampire.” He said softly, reaching over to put a hand on Adora’s shoulder. “If you stick with us, we can help you and keep you safe. And you can help us.”Adora looked up at him with a twinkle of hope in her eye. 

“You would do that for me?” She asked. “We’re supposed to be sworn enemies...”

Adora looked up at the night sky. She had to decide if they would take her to Bright Moon, or if she would continue down the path that Shadow Weaver had laid out for her. 

A sudden shriek of terror interrupted them, and they all became alert in an instant to the sound. People started screaming, and they ran to the source. 

The town square was in chaos. The lanterns were knocked over, windows were broken, decorations were torn down. It looked like a tornado came through the main street. Glimmer instantly knew what the source was, smelled it thick on the wind: vampires. 

She allowed the energy to flow through her, catalyzed by her own rage and anger at the disruption of the peaceful affair, and shifted before Adora could even realize. She became taller, stronger, and her pink cotton candy hair began to mutate to cover her whole form. She willed her body to rip itself apart and remake itself anew, too easily under the moonlight. Her ears popped upwards and pointed at the attackers, five of them, as they scattered across the streets. When she had fully realized her new form under the guidance of the moon, she inhaled sharply and growled with her lips pulled back. 

Adora spun around only a second and a half after coming to see the commotion and realized that Glimmer had turned into her bipedal wolf form. She gasped and stepped back, closer to the square as Bow also transformed. His connection to the moon wasn’t as strong as Glimmer’s, so it took a few more seconds. Even though she wasn’t powerful physically compared to other wolves, she held the advantage of the moon. 

Glimmer pushed past Adora and into the fray, where four vampires were trying to hunt and corner helpless humans to find a meal. One of them didn’t move much, and she soon realized that she was not a vampire... she had the same smell as Adora, though. She lived with them, but she hadn’t been transformed yet. 

Glimmer tackled one of the vampires away from a small crowd, then followed up with a slash of her claws across their body. The people escaped while the vampire recoiled, quickly reevaluating their odds now that the pack was here. She stood to her full height, taller than her human form but shorter than most of her pack, and prepared to defend her territory. 

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Adora had never seen active combat before. She would have, if she had followed through on her transformation with her clan, but she had never hunted before. It was worse than she thought. 

She didn’t get to catch the faces of those who came in and started to hunt the people. She knew that she would recognize her own superiors, but they were too fast.

Then the next thing she knew, she was looking at two werewolves again, ready to strike and... they ran right past her to defend their territory. 

They didn’t hurt her. 

Did she cause this? She didn’t know. It scared her. Similar to the fear of her own transformation, for the first time in a day, she felt fear. 

There were bodies... two bodies were on the ground, sucked dry of everything they had. It was all so fast, how could this happen so fast? How long had they been here before they were noticed? How had it gone so wrong?

There was one person amongst the chaos who wasn’t attacking or defending. They were searching. Adora’s heart swelled with relief in an instant and the fear was gone as she recognized the one familiar face she was longing to see. 

“Catra!” She called out, desperate for a lifeline. Just a day ago she thought she knew what she wanted, what was good and what was bad. Now, when everything else was turmoil, she needed the familiarity to ground her. 

Catra looked over to Adora and smiled and waved, as though there was nothing wrong in the world. 

“Adora, hey!” She called. “They let me join the raiding party!” She bubbled excitedly. The choice of words made Adora’s stomach drop.

They met up and embraced briefly. Soon they had to separate, and take each other in despite all the running and screaming and fighting around them, holding each other by the shoulders at arms length.

“Catra, what are you doing here?” Adora asked, even though her question had just been answered. 

“You went missing, we had to track you down!” Catra said. “We followed your scent this dumb tails town. Did you get captured or something? Did they hurt you?”

She couldn’t stop staring at the bodies. They were just people a moment ago, dancing and celebrating, but now they were ashen and dry. She tried to look away from their sunken cheeks, their glassy eyes, their mouths hanging open in a weak scream before they died. This wasn’t supposed to be how it goes. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

“Uh, hello? Adora?”

“Catra, we have to stop them.” Adora pleaded with a low voice. “This--this isn’t right! Look around, they’re killing people!” She gestured to the chaos around them.

At that, Catra became confused. She looked around but didn’t seem bothered. Her own apathy confused Adora.

“Well, yeah.” She shrugged. “They  _ kidnapped _ you.”

“No Catra, this is wrong!”

“Who cares?” Catra snapped, suddenly becoming irate. “We look out for each other. They hurt you, so we hurt them. Why do you care about these random people anyway? It’s not like they’ve ever done anything.”

“Exactly, they didn’t do anything wrong! They don’t deserve this, they didn’t agree to be eaten like we did. They shouldn’t be killed over a meal!”

“Adora, you sound crazy. What did they do to you?”

Adora grabbed Catra’s hand, but the latter yanked it away.

“The Crimson Horde has been lying to us, they aren’t protecting anyone!” She tried not to cry, not to let the fear into her voice. “The werewolves aren’t hurting people, _we_ are!”

“Yeah, no shit!” Catra yelled, throwing her arms out. “What’s gotten into you? You never cared about blood bags before!”

Adora looked around her at the chaos that her friends had brought to the town. She had consented to allowing her blood to feed her elders, under the condition that they continued to care for her. But this was no such deal, this was cold blooded. These people didn’t deserve it. 

“I mean honestly, what did you think was going to happen?” Catra continued. Adora looked at her oldest friend with betrayal in her eyes. 

“What?”

“Why do you think they sent you to find this place, Adora?” Catra became furious at her ineptitude. “They were planning on draining this village dry anyway! And you were going to help them do it! Are you seriously that dumb?”

“I... it can’t... it wasn’t...”

“Wake up Adora!” Catra screamed, and at the same time slapped Adora across the face.

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Glimmer slashed her claws through another vampire, but made no contact. The shadow before her flickered and was already making a counter strike before she could even finish her attack, and punched her in the ribs before she could blink. She fumbled under their strength and cried out in pain. 

She tried to spin her body to where he was standing, but he had already vanished again. Damnit, how were they so fast? Glimmer had tangled with vampires before, but it never got any easier to keep up with them. 

She followed her nose down the alleyway to hunt down the vampire. Along the way she passed another body, sucked dry like the others she had seen. How long had they been here before they were noticed? She growled in rage and pursued the attackers.

In this form, so close to the full moon, all she knew was to track down the scent. Find them. Hunt them. Protect their territory. Protect the pack. And that’s what she was going to do. Her mind became focused on that singular need to hunt the vampires.

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Adora’s hand flew up to the stinging pain that spread across her cheek as she fumbled backwards, unable to find words. Tears formed in her eyes and she wished that they wouldn’t make her look so weak. When she opened her eyes again, she looked at Catra with confusion and betrayal. Even Catra seemed scared.

“Snap out of it, Adora! Let’s just go home and forget about this whole thing, Adora.” Catra pleaded with her. She reached out to grab Adora’s shoulders but in a moment of weakness, Adora flinched away from her touch. Immediately, Catra’s face twisted in pain at the reaction. 

A howl echoed across the valley, a long and sweet note. The howl lasted for many heartbeats, and Adora felt like she was hearing a song made of night air. Her blood ran cold at the sound and they both looked for the source. More howling rose up to answer the battle cry, from wolves coming in from all sides of the town. They were surrounded. 

Adora saw Glimmer helping Bow to his feet after he had been bowled over, they were both searching for the call with hope in their eyes. Glimmer smiled and Adora could see all of her tall, pointed teeth in the moonlight. The song was now being howled in a continuous harmony all around them. 

“The pack is here--they came!” 

Glimmer met Adora’s eye. She looked worried. 

_ Don’t go. _ She seemed to ask her. Adora understood perfectly what it meant. It was so simple to see in her expression. And she wanted to stay. She couldn’t go back home, not now that she knew. 

But Adora looked to Catra. And she was scared of the howling all around her. Her eyes searched the darkness. One by one, the vampires fled from the shadows and escaped back the way they came. They were retreating. Adora again reached out for Catra’s hand, and held it fast in both of her own.

“Catra, please. Come with me. You don’t have to go back with them.” Catra’s eyes became wide but she was confused, and frightened. Panic set into her blood. Enormous wolves the size of horses ran through the town, a pack of size and number, and they began to switch from howling to snarling in their chase. 

“We’re retreating, we need to leave,” One of the vampires yelled at her. He had claw marks across his entire face. “ _ Now! _ ”

Catra’s hand left Adora’s as she backed away into the smoke. They maintained eye contact as she took more steps back.

“Catra,” Adora called out one last time, reaching out towards her as she vanished into the night, fleeing with the Crimson Horde. Adora felt her heart break within her chest. Maybe it was the pain from her battle, but she knew that part of her heart had just left her here. She didn’t know what to do anymore. She was lost and alone and afraid. She didn’t think it would hurt this much. She sank to her knees and tried desperately not to cry. 

But she wouldn’t give up. She had to be strong. 

For Catra.  _ Together. We must be strong.  _

Werewolves came up and out of the shadows until they surrounded Adora, all facing the way that the vampires had fled. Enormous black werewolves that shimmered in the fire light, bron wolves that blended into their surroundings, gray werewolves that looked like the speckled surface of the moon itself. Adora was surrounded, but they paid no attention to her as they chased off the threat. It felt almost like she was protected. It felt... strange. It felt safer than she ever felt in the barracks.

A large, soft hand rested on her shoulder. Adora saw the pink and sparkling fur it was covered with, ending in dull but long claws. Glimmer. 

She sat down next to Adora, her lilac eyes looking straight through her. A fluff of hair between purple ears reminded her of the cotton candy softness that was beneath the body of muscle and strength. Her heart tried to calm down with the reassuring presence of a strong werewolf beside her. 

“It’s okay.” Was all she said. 

Bow smiled over her shoulder, his tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth as he panted to catch his breath. The silly mannerism of their canine instincts made her smile, and before she knew it she was hugging Glimmer. She was so soft, her long and fluffy fur was like a pillow and Adora breathed in her animal scent. It smelled like woods, like campfires and sunlight and fresh rain. Tears fell from her eyes unwillingly and she nuzzled her face deeper into the embrace of fur around her, she seemed to create and emanate warmth. Glimmer hesitated for only a second before wrapping her arms around her, resting her muzzle on top of Adora’s head protectively. 

Maybe it wasn’t okay. Not yet. But it was going to be. 


	2. To Swallow The Sun Whole

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora and Catra both go through very difficult changes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I was not expecting such a huge positive response to this! Thank you everyone for reading and sharing your thoughts. Sorry it took so long, this is my first time posting something that isn't all written yet, so still gotta work on the writing. 
> 
> Again, this fic is based off of and made with permission of artofkace.tumblr.com   
> https://artofkace.tumblr.com/post/618587036767682560/more-pre-s5-ko-fi-request-art-werewolves-vs

They were walking to Bright Moon. It was still early in the night, and all the werewolves were at the peak of their strength this close to the full moon.

For a few minutes, Adora was too distracted by what had just happened to notice that the pack was discussing her fate. She dissociated on the ground, staring at the dark spot of woods where Catra had vanished, hoping that she would come back. For as well as she knew Catra, perhaps better than herself, she didn’t know what would happen to her back at the Crimson Horde. Adora wouldn’t be there to protect her. Would they punish her?

Bow helped Adora to her feet. His handsome brown fur was ruffled from the fight, but his eyes were bright even in the darkness. She anchored herself to this world by his kind eyes. 

He told her that they would take her to Bright Moon. She swallowed nervously. The rest of the pack seemed apprehensive of her, and she worried what her fate would be. Was she a prisoner? A meal? Even if she defected from the vampires, would they accept her?

“They won’t hurt you.” Glimmer was quick to reassure her when she saw the hesitation on her face. Adora wanted to believe her. 

“How do you know?”

“Because I won’t let them.” She stated matter-of-factly. 

It shouldn’t have comforted Adora. She should have argued that there were other variables, that it didn’t matter what Glimmer could say. But instead, against the odds, she did find herself relaxing. Glimmer would protect her. She knew she would. 

So, they walked to the palace that was home to the pack. 

It felt good, to be up during the night like she was used to, but the droopiness of her eyes and her sore feet kept reminding her that she had been awake for over eighteen hours now, and she was tired. Maybe it was the softness of Glimmer and Bow on either side of her that soothed her into drowsiness, their furs like big blankets as she walked the coolness of the forest at night. This time, they didn’t hold on to her or tie her up like before. She walked among them, keeping pace with the pack, and followed their lead. 

The forest was beautiful at night. Chilled mist and sparkling dewdrops on ferns, the smell of fruits and flowers mingling with the heavy scent of animals that surrounded her. But Adora’s mind was puzzling constantly over the same problem in her brain again and again. 

She had her reservations before, but now it was certain. She could never return home. She would never be accepted as the vampire candidate. 

But she still had to do something. Even if she could escape the werewolves, what would she do? Where would she go? She needed to stay with them. 

She needed to help get Catra out of there somehow. For that, being a mortal wouldn’t be enough. That only left her one option. 

They had been walking uphill for some time now. At last, they broke through the treeline to see the wide hilltop and the gleaming castle that crowned it. 

“Welcome to Bright Moon!” Glimmer happily said to her side. Adora gasped. 

The castle itself was a modern marvel of architecture. It was covered in so many windows that it looked like it could have been made entirely out of glass, on all the walls and the rooftops. Stained glass windows reflected the light of the full moon in cool tones of blue and soft purple. Spires reached up for the stars, so high that it looked like it pierced the heavens. Decorative waterfalls fell around sculpted turrets and into reflecting pools that sparkled in the starlight. Adora had never seen a place so beautiful, it seemed like walking into a lovely dream where the night itself turned into a home. 

“It’s so...” 

“Beautiful?” Bow asked, smiling wide. 

“Vulnerable!” Adora concluded. This confused Bow and Glimmer both. “It’s out in the open, on top of a hill, anyone can find it, its so exposed!” The tactician in her never rested.

“Well yeah.” Glimmer said like it was an obvious fact. “The more exposed we are to moonlight the better.” 

She could see the benefit to that, she supposed. As long as it reflected maximum moonlight to its habitants, they would never be vulnerable. And it made for a dazzling display in the night light. 

Inside the palace was just as good. Cool ceramic tiles lined the floors and walls, all in pale blues and lavenders. Grand open spaces with high ceilings to allow the cold night air to flow freely, and she felt like she was still outdoors. 

There was no time for a tour, and Glimmer rushed her down a corridor and into a massive room that was cluttered and untidy, unlike the rest of the castle. Bow shut the door behind them. 

“Okay,” Glimmer started. She was still in her wolf form, and had difficulty speaking clearly with a different mouth. A mouth that had an enormous long tongue and giant pointed teeth. But still, even in this form, Adora could tell that she was worried. 

“So the rest of the pack is going to report to my mom first. She’s the alpha, like our leader?” She explained in a rush. “Then we’ll have to figure out what to do with you. But don’t worry! It’ll all be cool.”

“Glimmer is the Princess of the pack.” Bow explained. 

“What’s a princess?” Adora asked innocently. 

“It’s a role in the pack--everyone has a role that relates to their duties for the pack. The alpha is in charge of making all the decisions. The princess is the next in line to take over if anything happens to the Alpha.” Bow explained. He lay down on the ground with his legs splayed out while he held his head up. 

“Oh... so what’s your role, then?”

Bow smiled and let his tongue hang out. 

“I’m the scout.” He said proudly. “Sneaking around, investigating, mainly looking ahead instead of fighting.”

“Oh.” Adora was starting to see that the pack was much like the horde. Everyone had a role to play in order to help the whole group. Everyone had a place. Where would she fit in? Would she be able to find a spot in this strange hierarchy? 

Glimmer sat down on the floor. Adora watched her move with confidence even when she relaxed. Her broad shoulders and long arms that ended in padded hands with claws seemed to be smaller than the other werewolves she had seen in the pack. And yet, it still seemed to be strong, strong enough to protect and to fight. Strong enough to have the courage to leave behind her home. The puzzle that Adora was stuck on came back to her, and she knew she only had one option. 

The werewolves could offer her help, but she needed to help herself. She didn’t want to cower and hide as a mortal from the horde. She wanted to fight them, to stop them from hurting people. She thought that becoming a vampire was what she needed in order to protect herself and the person she cared about. She thought that dying once just to live forever would be worth it if she could spend it with Catra. But that kind of living came at a cost she wasn’t prepared to pay. The werewolves on the other hand, they had the kind of power she needed. Strong, but not imposing. Protective without asking for sacrifice. They moved and worked together, relying on each other. And the people they protected, they didn’t have to show their thanks by opening up their veins. They did it because it was the right thing. She knew what she wanted now, and it clicked in her mind in a way that the horde never had. 

“Glimmer, I want you to turn me into a werewolf.”

“What?!”

“Whoa,” 

“Please!” Adora pleaded as earnestly as she could while Glimmer and Bow both reeled from the sudden request. “You can bite me and turn me into a werewolf, right?”

Glimmer’s ears pointed backwards and she seemed nervous. Her lilac eyes looked around the room a bit, then eyed Adora once again, carefully scrutinizing her. 

It wasn’t in Adora’s nature to ask anything. In the horde, she had always been a loyal servant, happy to help her superiors, and she was well taken care of. Asking for anything, be it help or favors, made her feel dirty in some way, like she had to earn it. She was so unused to asking anything of anyone, but she had to request this. Even though it would change everything. Even though they barely knew her, or she them. 

“I could but...” Glimmer hesitated. She ran a paw through the fur on her neck, smoothing down its ruffles from the battle. “Adora, are you sure? There’s no going back once it’s done.”

“Wait Glimmer, you’re considering this?” Bow asked anxiously. He stood up to come between the two of them, looking at Glimmer incredulously. 

“I have to do this.” Adora answered both of them. “I want to help you and fight the vampires.” Bow’s look softened and he cocked his head to the side as he considered. His ears dropped down. “Everything that I thought I knew was wrong. I can’t just walk away from this, I need to do something. I want to protect people, to help you guys. I can’t do that like this. I need to become stronger.”

She looked up at Glimmer specifically and saw a surprisingly human expression of understanding in her canine features. She didn’t speak it, but she wanted the one to bite her to be Glimmer. She didn’t know why, but she trusted her. Sure she trusted Bow to not hurt her, but Glimmer felt like they had always known each other, like a sense of familiarity and comfort. 

Glimmer put a paw on Adora’s shoulder. She could feel the heavy weight of her form pressing down on her whole body, and yet when Glimmer stood with the rest of the pack she seemed small in comparison. Adora wasn’t scared. 

“You need to be a hundred percent sure this is what you want.” She told her. “More than a hundred percent. Are you certain this is what you want? That you can handle it?”

Adora wasn’t sure of anything any more. She thought she was certain about her home, about what she wanted. But in the past day, she had learned that she didn’t want to be a vampire, that her superiors were evil leeches hunting the innocent, and Catra... She thought she could always rely on Catra no matter what, that they could do anything if they were together. But Catra wasn’t here...

Perhaps she would be more certain of herself and her decision if Catra were here...

But it didn’t matter. She wouldn’t give up on her that easily. She wanted to be with her again, and for that she would have to fight her way through the horde to get back to her. She needed this for more than just herself. 

It wasn’t just about becoming stronger. It wasn’t just about protecting innocent people. It wasn’t even all about Catra. She wanted to be a part of something with a purpose, and the wolves' song seemed to call out to her, echoing in her mind on the beams of moonlight. She trusted Glimmer. She wanted to stay with her, and Bow, and the pack, and learn everything she could. For the first time in her life, she felt a sense of belonging that she always desired in the Fright Zone. 

“I’m ready.” She said sternly, taking Glimmer’s paw in her hands. She stood solid, rigid, and eager. If Glimmer thought Adora was hesitant, seeing the fire of determination in her eyes made up her mind then. She closed her eyes while she took a deep breath before continuing. 

“I can turn you.” She promised. “But it won’t be easy. It will hurt, a _lot_.” She warned. But Adora only appeared more eager. “Not everyone makes it through the process... it can be overwhelming. Are you still sure?”

“Yes, I can take it.” Adora swore. She knew almost nothing about it, but it sounded similar to what she could have expected with the vampires. Pain like fire, tearing through her system, to leave behind a new form. She was no stranger to pain or suffering. 

Glimmer got the feeling that Adora knew what she was getting into. And if not, she seemed like the kind of person who could take it anyway. That was who Adora was, she would eventually learn, someone who willingly took on suffering in order to help the greater good at her own expense. It was the kind of quality that marks a werewolf, the kind of thing that wolves pride in. Maybe that’s why she trusted Adora with this sudden life-changing decision. 

She crouched down to be more level with Adora. Off to the side, Bow chewed his claws anxiously. She opened her mouth and peeled back her lips to show her large pointed teeth and Adora only looked more eager rather than scared at the sight. 

She bought her mouth to Adora’s neck. Would this work? No, too dangerous. Her arm? No, too small... Her shoulder, she decided. Her shoulder would receive the bite. 

Glimmer had never bitten a person before, and had certainly never turned anyone. She didn’t know exactly what she was doing. But she knew that she had to break skin. She didn’t want to hurt Adora, even knowing that the pain that would follow the bite would be even worse. She could feel Adora under her mouth, tensing up in preparation, her acidic vampire smell filling her senses. She closed her eyes and tried to do it quickly, like pulling off a bandaid, and suddenly clamped her teeth down into Adora’s flesh. 

To Adora’s credit, her only reaction to the bite at first was to grunt and squint in pain. She bit the bullet and steeled herself as her skin tore open under trusted teeth, and grit her own teeth at the sensation. But she was not afraid. She didn’t pull away. 

Glimmer tasted blood. It filled her mouth and nose right away, and she had to push down her instincts when her pupils dilated at the smell. She remained clamped down on Adora’s shoulder while she pushed away her canine impulses, a moment's hesitation that was painful for Adora, and as soon as she realized, she pulled away hastily. She took a few steps back and wiped her mouth. The taste of blood in her mouth only reminded her how hungry she was after another transformation, her desire to hunt coming to the front of her mind. But at the same time, the taste of mortal human blood on her tongue had a sour taste to it, especially when it smelled so much like the vampires that had feasted on Adora her whole life. 

She blinked a few times and looked up at Adora. Bow was standing over her protectively, as she had fallen to her knees. Gods, she didn’t kill her, did she? No, she wasn’t bleeding heavily enough for serious injury. The red marks stained her white shirt in dotted lines that outlined her jaw around her shoulder, but didn’t pour out lethally. 

Bow sniffed Adora’s body curiously, looking for any changes in her condition. She started breathing more heavily, her eyes became clouded and her whole body tensed up in a tightly wound coil. She curled downwards inwardly on herself as sweat poured from her skin, almost entirely covering the vampire smell on her while her body started shaking as though in great exertion. 

“Adora!” She cried in worry, reaching forward. She could smell fear. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora was certain that she had swallowed the sun. 

And if she hadn’t, then this would be what it felt like if anyone ever tried to swallow the sun. 

The inside of her skin was on fire, she knew this because when she closed her eyes all she saw was red. It became so big in her mind, so overwhelming, that she was unable to focus on anything else in her surroundings. She didn’t know where she was any more. All she knew was that her blood was boiling and her body was melting away from her bones in agonizing fire. 

_ Hey, Adora _

She made sounds of pain, in that red void that she now lived in, but could do nothing to stop the forces that propelled her forward. 

_ I guess I just wanted to see the sunlight. Before everything changes. I think I might miss it. _

Her eyeballs pulsed and throbbed in waves of pain, stronger with each heartbeat. She couldn’t move. Couldn’t breath. There was no room for air in her lungs, she was filled only with the growing size of red hot pain. 

_ You sound like you’ve gone soft _

Everything was hot, so hot, she was burning alive. All she saw was red and there would be nothing left of her body. 

Her mind was hazy, no room for thoughts, only the searing white hot fire that surrounded her. She screamed. She couldn’t concentrate on anything. She felt her body melting off her bones, slipping away through her fingers as the sun inside her burned away the impurities. 

_ Not everyone makes it through the process. _

Glimmer, her voice. 

_ Adora! _

She focused on the voice, clinging to the sound to anchor her. She followed the sound like she was pulling on a rope that led to safe shores away from the stormy sea she drowned in that was made of tongues of fire that wanted to crawl on her body. 

She would not burn away completely. 

She would become the sun. 

Adora would not succumb to the power of the fire inside her, she would make it a part of her. She would infuse her blood with fire, coat her skin in the sunlight and let her insides be warmed by the furnace of the sun. She would reject the cold void of space and become light. 

She was not burned away by the fire, she was the fire. 

Adora had swallowed the sun. And she would become the new sun. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Glimmer didn’t know what she was thinking. This was a stupid decision! 

Why would she bite her? Because she had asked? Stupid! 

And now Adora was passed out, writhing on the floor of her bedroom in pain, covered in a sheet of sweat. 

She had never turned anyone before. She hadn’t been turned herself, but born as a werewolf. Such was the blessing of a Noble. She couldn’t imagine the pain it must cause. She had heard that with others, there wasn’t always a chance that they would survive. 

_ Please survive _ She prayed. Adora’s whole body was tense and taught. Her jaw stayed clamped shut so tight that Glimmer worried she would shatter her teeth. Her back arched up from the ground and she groaned in pain.  _ Please survive. _

She barely knew Adora. But she knew that she was strong, both in mind and body. Her morals were resolute, and she was clearly no stranger to hardship. Not every mortal could give a Princess a run for her money in a two on one fight. She just hoped it would be enough, hoped that her strength wouldn’t fail her as the werewolf genes coursed through her blood. Hoped that those genes wouldn’t cannibalize her own body, destroying her. 

Hoped she would come back in one piece. 

_ Please Adora, don’t die. _ She pleaded. 

She didn’t know how much time had passed when Adora became less agitated. She hoped it was from lessening pain and not exhaustion as her strength failed her. Her body seemed to melt in Glimmer’s arms, going limp as she finally relaxed slightly. Glimmer’s ears turned forwards hopefully. 

“Is she gonna be okay?” Bow asked over her shoulder.

“I don’t know!” She snapped probably a little harshly. She couldn’t control her own speeding heart rate and didn’t know what was happening just as much as Bow. She just wanted to see those blue eyes open again. 

A weak groan of pain escaped Adora’s lips as she shifted slightly. Whatever had overtaken her, the worst had come and passed. She would live. 

“She’s alive!”

Glimmer held onto Adora in her arms as she blinked up at them. She winced as though still feeling residual pain, and her lips curled back to reveal larger, sharper teeth in her mouth. Glimmer gasped. Adora looked ravishingly strong with her new teeth, it fit in with her strong features in her bones. Like it was always meant to be. It made her look even more wolfish even in this human form, a look that made heat rise in Glimmer and made her tail fluff out in alarm at the breathtaking sight of Adora in her arms. 

The same second she opened her eyes, she shut them again quickly, and hissed in a breath in pain. Her nose twitched as she began breathing heavily and she squirmed uncomfortably in Glimmer’s arms. She released Adora nervously at the strange reaction.

“Adora? Are you alright?” She asked, sniffing over her. 

“Daah, loud!” Adora cringed, covering her ears. Her eyes were still tightly shut. 

“Oh, she must be overwhelmed!” Bow whispered as quietly as he could beside Glimmer. “Her senses are stronger now.”

“I keep forgetting that mortals are basically blind and deaf.”

“Don’t forget smell,” Bow added, and at the sound Adora whimpered in pain in the fetal position across from them on the floor. Bow winced at the effect his words had, and resolved to try and be quieter. 

Glimmer could see that her muscles, now powered up with vigor like she hadn’t known before the bite, was taught as a wire. The teeth marks around her collar and shoulder had stopped bleeding, another sign that she was successful in her transformation. 

Glimmer knew that she had to do something. She had caused this total sensory overload for her, in a way, and she had to make sure that Adora was okay. She wanted to reach out, to say something, but knew that it would cause her more pain. She could hear, smell, and see everything around her like she never had before, and it was overwhelming her mind. 

“Turn out the lights.” She instructed Bow. He got up from looking over her shoulder and went to do so. It was still early in the night, so the lights in the castle were on as the werewolves were still active. She padded closer to Adora, her fingers spreading out over the cool tile without making a sound. Adora continued to cover her ears and squeeze her eyes shut as her breathing became heavy, panicked. 

Glimmer didn’t want to alarm Adora. But how could she let her know that she was there when she was trying so hard to shut out the new sights and sounds and smells around them? It still left taste and touch, two things that remained somewhat the same between mortals and wolves. She could work with one of those. 

She came to the sit in front of Adora, and began to wrap her arms around her wounded figure. She didn’t know what she could expect, but having the blonde gasp and go completely still wasn’t it. She continued, pulling Adora into her body softly and feeling her relax. 

Adora’s eyes went wide with the sudden realization that the pink werewolf was now totally surrounding her in a hug. She looked up and saw sparkling pink fur, soft and downy, totally enveloping her in the darkness. In all her life, she had never known softness or comfort like this. She didn’t know where she ended and the fur began. 

Around her body were strong arms. It felt almost like she was protecting her from the outside world, just trying to hold her in on herself when she felt like she was going to explode. Glimmer looked down at her with worry, but her tail started wagging behind her, Adora could tell from the sound of it knocking into the furniture without care. 

“Adora,” She said very softly, but not quite a whisper. “Tell me five things you can see.”

Was this some sort of strange initiation ritual? Some kind of test? Was it a werewolf culture thing? She didn’t know. Her brain started to go numb. 

“Uh, you. Me.” She started, the things she was certain of without trying. “Bow,” She smiled, seeing him happily wagging his tail as well. “Uh, chair, window.” She listed. Glimmer’s grip on her loosened slightly, and Adora felt like she could breath. 

“Good. Can you name four things you can hear?” She remembered her dad doing this with her once when they went to a festival. So many lights and colors and sounds and smells, and she was so young. She didn’t remember the order that they were supposed to go in, but that was okay. It wasn’t as important as the effect it had in slowing down her busy brain. 

“Um, crickets.” Adora said. She closed her eyes and focused on her ears, trying to separate the overlapping sounds. “Breathing. Your tail.” She chuckled. “And... wind.” She said. Glimmer loosened her grip a bit more. 

“Nice. Can you think of three things you can smell?”

“Woods. Fur... blood.” She said. The blood in her shirt was drying, but a werewolf could still make it out. The woods and the fur were honestly the same scent, difficult to separate. 

“And two things you can feel?”

“The floor. You.” Adora said, absentmindedly cuddling closer to the warmth that surrounded her. She could hear Glimmer’s tail thumping faster, wagging harder with her increasing happiness. It was such a silly thing, it made her smile. 

“One last thing, something you can taste.” Glimmer said. 

Adora swiped her tongue around her mouth. Her eyes became huge. 

“Holy shit, my teeth!” She exclaimed, hands flying up to her mouth to feel. She continued to explore the new features of her mouth as though nobody were watching, dumbly putting her fingers right on her pointed fangs with fascination. Glimmer’s heart picked up the pace again. She looked absolutely ridiculous, shoving her fingers in her mouth like a toddler. 

Glimmer stood up and then helped Adora to her feet. Her panic was gone, but she was still checking herself over after her transformation. She looked at both sides of her hands, patted herself down as though checking for fur or a tail, saw her own wounded bite mark healing. 

“So, did it work?” She asked. Glimmer tried to choke back a chuckle at how oblivious she could be. And why would that be so endearing?

“Yeah, it worked.” She said instead. 

“How do you feel?” Bow asked, still whispering just in case. Adora hesitated. 

“Uh... different.” She concluded. “How--”

A knock at the door interrupted them. The knocker came in without waiting for an answer. 

They were a dark pelted werewolf, walking on four legs but incredibly large in size, enough to fill the doorway. Her paws were white against the black of her fur, which was longer and smoother than either Bow or Glimmer’s. Her ears were gray, and her eyes were a light yellow like Bow’s, and she seemed to stare into Adora’s core as though she could already tell something was different. Perhaps it was her scent that had already changed, maybe it was some deep instinct to just know within other werewolves. 

She pulled her ears backwards and bowed her head to Glimmer. 

“Angella is ready for you. All of you.” She snorted in a husky voice. It seemed more difficult for her to speak than for Glimmer. Perhaps it was the full moon or the difference in the form she chose. Adora wondered how she had knocked if she was like this. 

Glimmer nodded. 

“Time to meet the Alpha.” She said to Adora. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Angella didn’t know what to expect when her pack told her about the horde girl they found in the woods. She thought surely she would be a vampire loyalist, probably taking after them if she hadn’t been turned yet: perhaps dark clothes, sneering at the pack and spitting on their floors, demanding a blood sacrifice and trying to murder any mortals in their path. 

What she did  _ not _ expect to see was a flustered and shy, eager-to-please young woman. Her clothes told a story of a fight that she barely made it out of, and even more her eyes seemed to gawk at every detail while her mouth hung open like a tourist. A tourist who had grown up living in a hole and never seen a building before, but still. 

The girl was brought in along with her wayward daughter and her scout. The three made for quite a visual: one one side, the noble princess of the pack, all pink and sparkles. On the other side, a humble but confused wolf boy who just wanted everyone to be his friend. And between them, a girl about their age who didn’t seem to realize where she even was. She seemed to be distracted by the stained glass mural on the ceiling, a depiction of the cycles of the moon that rose in a dome overhead, illuminated in multi-colored panels that glistened in the moonlight. 

Angella waited for what she thought was an appropriate time for the young woman to introduce herself or better yet explain herself, but nothing happened. She cleared her throat, and at the same time Glimmer nudged her with an elbow. 

The blonde startled and looked around the massive room. The dark pelted wolf who had summoned them escorted them all there, and Angella herself sat on a raised throne before the circular room. She swallowed nervously at the tall, elegant figure that looked down on them. Her pale skin seemed to perfectly mirror the shade of the moon, and her hair flowed behind her like a galaxy full of stars. She was tall and thin, but obviously power slept behind her frame from decades of commanding a powerful pack with confidence. She scrutinized Adora carefully, looking her over top to bottom while Adora began to sweat nervously. 

She wasn’t sure what to do or say. But it seemed like the alpha was waiting on something from her before she continued. She tried to be respectful, and bowed down on one knee before she cleared her throat and spoke up. 

“Uh, hi.” She said plainly. She immediately mentally kicked herself for the formal language in front of such an important dignitary. “My name is Adora.” 

Angella stood up from her throne, and stepped forward, silencing the newcomer.

“Adora. I am Angella, Alpha of the Bright Moon pack.” She said coldly. “The strongest pack in all of Etheria.”

Adora looked over to Glimmer for some sort of cue, but she moved her hands as though pushing something forward, trying to say  _ go on _ , so she did. 

“I want to pledge myself to your pack. Ma’am.” She continued. 

“You were raised by the Crimson Horde, were you not?”

“Uh, yes, that’s true.” Adora rubbed the back of her neck and felt shame crawl over her skin. 

“You would turn your back against the ones you raised you?”

“I know you have no reason to trust me...” She defended, her eyebrows coming together in determination. “But I’ve seen what the horde is doing to the people of Etheria. I’m ready to fight to stop them, no matter what. If you’ll give me a chance.”

Angella hesitated before speaking again. She stalked closer with her hands behind her back until she was right in front of Adora. She saw the mark on her shoulder, smelled the change within her. She must have been strong to survive the ordeal. 

“I see that you have already committed yourself by making the change.” She analyzed. She could smell the scent of her daughter on the bite. She looked to Glimmer, but she seemed to be distracted by the golden warrior before them, dazed out. Angella rolled her eyes. As far as the girl in question, she kept her gaze on the respectfully down at the ground, and she could smell a slight hint of fear on her. 

She would want to keep an eye on this strange person. It wasn’t every day that a blood bank came to them willing to turncoat. Besides, she may prove useful if she was as strong as she seemed, even in this form. 

“Very well then.” She decreed. “We will keep a close eye on you until you can be trusted. But if you want to fight the horde, then you may stay with us while we teach you. Now rise, Adora.” 

She took the young woman’s hand to help her up from the ground and grinned devilishly at her, showing off her previously hidden fangs. They were larger than Glimmer’s, a bit more imposing. And it was surely a hundred percent intentional, based on the way that she smirked when Adora gasped at them. 

“And welcome to the pack.” She added. 

Adora looked to the wolves that surrounded her, in their various forms. This castle, these beasts, they were her home now. She desperately wanted to prove herself to them, to find her role within the pack. But even more than that, she thought about the one person she wished was here. It wouldn’t be her family until she knew that Catra was safe. Becoming a werewolf was just the first step. Perhaps if she could help Glimmer fight the vampires, then Glimmer might help her to find her friend. 

That is, if Catra still accepted her... so much had changed. She could only hope that Catra hadn’t changed too much. 

“Now come,” Angella said. “Your transformation is almost complete. There is one more thing that must be done.”

“There is?” She thought that the near death experience would have been enough, since clearly the changes in her body had already taken root. She dreaded having to go through something like that again. 

“Step outside with me.” She said, waving for Adora and Glimmer to follow. Bow and the dark furred wolf remained inside. They came to a large balcony several stories up that overlooked the forest. At this point, it was close to midnight and the full moon was at its zenith in the sky. “All that is left,” Angella explained. “Is to be exposed to the light of the full moon. Then we can see your true form.”

“Okay...” Adora said, walking up to the railing of the balcony. She looked up at the moon. They wanted her to transform... Was this a test? “Should I... should I be doing something? Or...” 

“Just try to relax.” Glimmer coached. “Transforming is like breathing. In............... And out.” She explained with deep breaths. 

Adora turned away from them and gripped the concrete railing, and closed her eyes. Breathe in......... And out. She couldn’t feel the moon beams on her skin like she would with the sunlight, but she felt its light surround her. Breathe in.............. And out. 

It started on her back. A warm itch under her skin that soon subsided to comfortable weight as the itch spread across her skin, up her arms, over her scalp, across her torso, down her legs, like a ripple in water. Breathe in............... And out. The ripple was replaced by a warm softness that weighed down with power. Soon her whole body felt heavy with static, a comfortable intensity. She wasn’t afraid. She had to do this, for Catra. In............ and out. Catra... In...............and out............ become the sun.........

Glimmer had never seen a more beautiful specimen in her life. Adora’s form was tall and bipedal, golden furred and strong. She was big, taller and broader than herself or Bow in the same form, bigger than most of the wolves in their pack. Her blonde fur seemed to glow in the moonlight like the sunshine of summer. Underneath her magnificently shining pelt, raw power sat dormant in robust muscles. Her back and tail were a darker straw, and her front belly a lighter cream. Glimmer was especially infatuated and entertained by the golden tuft of fur that swooped backwards between her ears, mirroring the hair poof that she pinned back as a human. Her tail was bushy, her paws were dark to match her back. Every inch of her seemed to scream--no, sing, that was more accurate-- dominance and dynamic fortitude. Glimmer couldn’t look away, couldn’t even blink as she studied the magnificent creature. Breathing came difficult to her as she felt a warmth like she was standing in sunlight. 

Adora opened her eyes. A light blue stare found her, curiously. Adora blinked twice. Her eyes were beautiful. Rugged and smooth. Glimmer smiled. 

Then she looked down at herself, and her eyes suddenly grew to the size of saucers as she jumped in surprise. She scrambled in panic taking in her new form: she looked at her hands turned into padded paws, felt her fur across her chest, wobbled unbalanced on her new legs, and finally found her tail and actually chased it around herself in a circle as she tried to catch up with it to get a better look. But she was also panicking, so much unexpected change overwhelming her as she made yells of surprise in a more canine voice. 

The more she freaked out, the more she lost her concentration, and the form slipped away from her mental grasp. By the time she fell over from dizziness, she was mostly transformed back into her human form. The fur seemed to recede back into her skin as she shrunk back down to size, clutching her head to steady her buzzing mind. She didn’t have the mental capacity to take note of her torn and ragged clothes, pulled apart by her growing body and still bloodied from her bite. The exposed skin was all that Glimmer could notice, the torn shirt hanging loosely from one shoulder and exposing her toned back.

_ Wolf brain and lesbian brain _ Bow’s voice rang in her mind teasingly. She shut her jaw which was hanging open. 

“Remarkable.” Angella said happily. “You will make a fine addition to the pack, Adora. Glimmer, perhaps you could-- Glimmer?” Angella struggled to get her daughter’s attention. She was still wide eyed at the beautiful woman on her knees in front of her, recovering from the dizzying transformation. “Glimmer, hello? Stop staring.”

Glimmer shook her head, her ears flopping loudly as she cleared her mind. 

“Glimmer, perhaps you can help our new friend find some more intact clothes.” She instructed. 

“Right, yes.” She agreed. Her mind was still half on Adora, and she helped her to her feet and helped her to cover up her exposure as she led her back inside. “Come on, let’s get you something more pack looking!” She offered. 

Adora was still light headed from the energy it took to transform so quickly. She leaned on Glimmer for support, feeling lucky to at least have such a caring friend beside her as she went through so many changes in her life. And now that they were of the same pack, she felt a pull towards her. A need for contact, comfort, from someone she could trust with her life. She didn’t think it was her canine instincts wanting to bond with her pack, she thought it more of wanting to show her gratitude to Glimmer for all she was helping her with. She wanted to prove her place in the pack, whatever her role would be. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora hoped that Catra was thinking of her. Turns out, it was all she could do. Especially when facing her own failure in front of her superior, Shadow Weaver. 

She was a centuries old vampire who was the second in command to Lord Hordak. She ran the Fright Zone with an iron fist, cold and cruel to all those below her. Hordak may have been in charge, but he was rarely ever seen. It was common knowledge that Shadow Weaver was the one who was really running the Fright Zone. As long as it kept in line with Hordak’s wishes, she was the main boss of the oldest and strongest vampire clan in the world. 

She also happened to be the one who raised Adora and Catra personally, but if anything she was even more vicious and merciless to her wards. She fed on them as soon as they were of age, and told them they could be vampires one day if they worked hard to prove themselves. It was no secret that Adora was the favored of the two, but both children had the pity of the entire Fright Zone for having to spend so much time with the tyrant. 

“I gave you one  _ simple _ task, and you failed!” She screamed at Catra. Her imposing figure darkened the room and her presence alone seemed to make the temperature drop. Her robes were old fashioned, dating back hundreds of years in style, flowing magenta that hugged her bony features. “You could not even do one thing right, even if it was to save your own skin!” She bellowed. 

It had been like this for an hour now, ever since Catra had returned with the other vampires from the raiding party. Her mission to bring back Adora had failed. No amount of excuses would save her from the wrath of her caretaker. In the past as well as now, she did not hold back from hurting her, no matter that she was so much younger or that Shadow Weaver had raised her herself. She made her fury known in the form of spots on Catra’s skin to match her deep purple and red robes. The only thing holding her back from further brutality was the fact that Catra needed to be preserved in order to feed the witch her blood. 

Catra shook on the ground weakly, hoping that the violence part of her punishment would soon be over so that they could move on through the routine to her next discipline, usually increased chores, decreased food, less time for rest. 

“You have failed to bring back Adora and you shall suffer the consequences in her place!” She warned the girl as she stood up to attention yet again. This is what Catra did, she endured. She endured suffering and kept getting back up again and again because it would be worth it if Adora was there. Because one day they could be vampires, calling the shots, living forever. 

Now, she doubted her place here. Adora made leaving seem so easy, like all the threats of the werewolves and the great world outside the Fright Zone was somehow less scary than Shadow Weaver’s disappointment. Why take all this abuse when all that awaited her at the end was not the soft touch of her lifelong friend and bunkmate, but a cold empty bed?

Nevertheless, she stood at attention. It was what she knew. With all the changes to her routine, Adora gone, she needed to cling to something familiar, even if it meant another mark on her dark skin. 

“I have grown tired of your excuses!” Shadow Weaver continued. She paced the room that Catra used to share while she flung her arms around in rage. “I will not excuse a  _ failure _ like you!”

“Shadow Weaver.” A new voice darkened the doorway, halting Shadow Weaver’s fit. A man, dark and husky, totally covered in shadow. She gasped and stood up straight. Catra was instantly curious, there was nobody who could scare Shadow Weaver, unless...

“Lord Hordak!” She bowed slightly, nervous. Catra’s eyes became huge as she looked again at the imposing silhouette. She could just barely make out a flowing cape, broad shoulders, sharp angular features. She couldn’t see his face, but there were rumors that he was so old that he had gone pale as snow. He did not step into the room, would not reveal himself to Catra. 

“I received word of your failed operation in the Tails town.” He said bitterly. His voice sounded like feet crunching on gravel. 

“My Lord, it was essential to retrieve Adora,” Shadow Weaver said apologetically. She seemed eager to cover her own ass, and for that Catra was grateful. She never got to see Shadow Weaver flustered and embarrassed, and now here she was getting ready to kiss up. 

“Adora.” Hordak interrupted her, drawing the name out. “I take it she was. Not? Recovered?” He said quietly, but just as venomously.

Shadow Weaver actually flinched at his words and Catra had to hold back a smile. Finally, the witch is being held responsible instead of blaming her underlings. 

“I’m sorry Lord Hordak, she was not.” She explained. “But I will not fail you again! She will be---”

“Forget Adora.” Hordak commanded. He still hadn’t moved a muscle from where he stood concealed in shadows. His body portrayed a calm that was not met by the sharpness of his tone. He could have been a granite statue. “I do not have time to waste resources on one mortal girl.” 

At that, Catra’s heart sank. What would happen to Adora? Would she ever see her again?

“But my Lord,” Shadow Weaver pleaded. “She was to be the next vampire candidate! Without her--”

“Pick another.” Hordak spat impatiently. “Who in her unit was second to her?”

Shadow Weaver swallowed nervously, glancing back at Catra. Catra did not meet her eye, but kept staring at Hordak. 

“This is she, my Lord.” Shadow Weaver said hesitantly. “But she is the same one who failed--”

“Turn her. She will take Adora’s place and we can finally move on from this embarrassment.” Hordak decreed. He stepped forward into the sterile electric light of the room, and Catra’s blood ran cold at the horrors of his visage. 

He truly was ancient, untouched by the sun in thousands of years. Dark lines outlined his features in a sickly way, but she knew he was stronger than any living creature. His eyes were a bright red, like blood, and he glowered at Catra with a snarl. His head was bald and smooth, ashy white, and his ears were pointed and tall. Catra couldn’t look away from his face, as though she was looking at a corpse that had died hundreds of years ago. She felt afraid. 

“Perform the change tonight.” Hordak ordered Shadow Weaver, still eyeing Catra up and down. “And I shall wash my hands of this whole affair.”

“B-But, my Lord!”

In the blink of an eye, Hordak moved to stand over a cowering Shadow Weaver, growling with his fangs out. He held her by the throat in a clawed hand.

_ “You question me?! _ ”

“No--No, Lord Hordak!” She quickly apologized frightfully. “Your wish is my command!”

He released her and stalked so smoothly out the room that it was almost like he was hovering over the ground. 

“You are correct.” He said over his shoulder right before he left, hesitating in the doorway. “My wish _ is  _ your command. Do not disappoint me.” He threatened, then vanished. 

Catra hadn’t realized that she had stopped breathing. She let out a breath shakily and was quick to inhale as she felt a cold sweat seize her body. But there was no time to recover. Shadow Weaver came to her once again, standing tall in front of the cadet, this time more calmly with her fingertips gently touching in front of her. She scowled behind her ceramic mask and Catra could tell she was gritting her teeth at having to eat her words at Hordak’s command. 

Her heart raced as she realized that it was happening, right now. She was about to be bitten. No longer a blood bank or a slave, no last look at the sunrise, it was happening _now_. She was afraid. 

“Catra...” Shadow Weaver growled. She reached out to Catra’s neck with cold fingers. “You are obviously not my choice for the candidate. If it were not for Hordak...” Her grip suddenly tightened around Catra’s collarbone, the immense strength she usually held back coming to her body like a vice. She shook her head and Catra prayed that she wouldn’t appear as frightened as she felt. With her other hand that wasn't gripping Catra, she reached up to remove her red mask. “This is going to hurt.” She warned before bending over the young woman. That was the last thing Catra remembered before she blacked out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone, including me: I'm not a furry, BUT,
> 
> lol let me know what you think. Don't forget to check out some of my other she-ra fics which is also Glimmer/Catra/Adora. Kudos and Comments get me through the day, stay safe!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra has her first blood and Adora gets the hang of being a werewolf.

Catra felt groggy. It was a sluggish sort of sticky feeling all over her muscles and skin that was instantly uncomfortable enough to warrant waking up more, bringing her more alertness. She rubbed her eyes before she opened them, wondering how long she had been asleep for. She didn’t know it, but she was waking up for the last time, the idea of ever sleeping again disappearing in the rearview mirror of her memories.

She was in her bunk. She looked around despite the stiffness aching through all her joints, and rubbed her neck with a groan. Her vision was foggy, and she could feel a headache behind her eyes like her head was in a vice. 

How long had she been asleep? The last thing she remembered was--

“Get up, Catra.” Shadow Weaver’s voice. 

She sat up and gasped as it all came back to her: the punishment for not bringing back Adora, meeting Hordak, and then Shadow Weaver taking off her mask for the first time she had ever seen...

Her hand flew to the sore spot on her neck. It felt scabbed over smoothly, totally dry of any of the blood she had felt trickling across her collarbone when it was first punctured. 

She looked again around her room, and saw Shadow Weaver sitting on the empty bunk next to her, her ankles neatly crossed like a lady, hands folded in her lap. She felt a swell of anger in her chest, but she wasn’t sure if it was because she was mad at Shadow Weaver, her least favorite person in the world being there when she woke up on her best friend’s cot, or if she was mad at her best friend for not being there. She had always thought that she and Adora would do this together. Either way, she knew she didn’t want to be around Shadow Weaver any longer, and her brows furrowed in frustration. 

“I said get up.” Shadow Weaver commanded once again, more impatiently. Catra sat up on the bed to face her with her feet on the floor, hand still over the bite mark in a morbid curiosity. 

“Shadow Weaver.” She practically hissed. “To what do I owe the pleasure.” She didn’t bother to hold back the sarcasm in her tone. Now that she was more awake, she was starting to realize that things were different. The lights felt brighter, the grime smelled stinkier, the clanking metal pipes were louder. She was a smart girl and easily chalked up the differences to her transformation. And as such, she figured there wouldn’t be much that Shadow Weaver could do to hurt her as badly as she had before. 

Shadow Weaver stood and placed her hands behind her back. Catra could tell she was only pausing because she was biting her tongue with some harsh remark, trying to appear more patient than she felt. Shadow Weaver wanted nothing more than to tear into her flippant failure of a cadet, but she was on orders. When she finally did speak, it was strained with monotony and evenness. 

“You’ve been unconscious some time now while your body changed.” She said as she paced around the small quarters. “Your cells had to tear down old fragile systems in order to replace them with stronger ones... welcome to being a vampire.” She explained. 

Catra looked down at herself. She didn’t look very different, just felt different. Stronger, more alert. It was hard to keep up with all the information her senses were reporting to her at once, but she didn’t show it. 

Of course, one thing  _ should _ look different. She reached up a hand and opened her mouth. Sure enough, elongated and pointed canines awaited her, pricking at her finger but not puncturing. She swept her tongue over the new feature to feel their scope. It was certainly different, much larger and even harder to talk around. It would take some getting used to. 

“Now that you have my gifts,” Shadow Weaver continued, pacing herself towards the door. “You will be better equipped to bring Adora back.”

“What? You’re kidding!” Catra stood up suddenly. “It’s still  _ her _ you want?” She couldn’t believe this. Shadow Weaver was just told by Lord Hordak himself to ignore Adora. Even though Catra wondered if she would ever see her again, going against orders seemed like a bad idea. And now no matter what she did, find Adora or not, she would be disobeying either Shadow Weaver or Hordak. “She’s not coming back, okay? She made her choice. Clearly she didn’t want to be here.” She spat. 

Shadow Weaver paused and looked over her shoulder in a hard glare from behind her mask. 

“Hold your tongue!” She commanded in a loud, irate hiss. “Adora takes priority. You have no excuse now that you have made the change.”

She continued out the door as she explained, and Catra followed. They exited into a hallway. 

“Nevertheless, you will be accompanied by Scorpia.”

As she finished the sentence, Catra became aware of another person with them waiting out in the hall. Even with her reflexes, she had no time to react as the giant woman pinned her with arms as big as Catra’s head. 

“Wow you must be Catra!” She said happily. “Just so you know, I’m a hugger!” 

So that’s what this feeble attempt at pinning her down was. She knew she wasn’t in any danger, but she tried to squirm away nonetheless, screeching with indignation. But Scorpia didn’t seem to notice her desire for distance, because she only squeezed her harder into her chest with a big smile so hard that Catra wondered how much her new immortality would be able to protect her. 

She eventually managed her way out and leapt back, her height and distance from the simple maneuver surprising even herself. Her senses were overburdened with information. This woman, she had a strange smell to her. It was stronger than any of the smells she was used to in the Fright Zone, in fact it reminded her of the woods when she went to retrieve Adora the first time. 

She looked at the woman again, eying her over. She was at least two feet taller than Catra, even though Catra was on the shorter side it still left her ducking to get through doorways. She had short white hair, unnaturally shiny and full. .She had big dark eyes, her whole face seemed delighted at having a new friend. The rest of her body seemed to match the herculean strength of her arms, massively strong even by supernatural standards. She wore the same clothes Catra did, the red and white garb that denoted a cadet. Cadet being the nicest way to say “blood bank in training to either become a vampire or a slave” for the Horde. 

Scorpia bounced on her feet with delight while Catra kept out of arms reach. 

“You’re kidding, right?” She scoffed. 

“Scorpia will keep an eye on you.” Shadow Weaver insisted, and from her tone, there was no point in arguing it. “I thought it necessary since you are still new to all of this.”

Catra inhaled the woodsy scent again and growled. 

“A  _ wolf _ ?” She was so offended that her voice rose to a squeak. Scorpia smiled brightly with enormous canine teeth, confirming her suspicion. 

“Oh don’t worry about that, Cat!” Scorpia said. “Hah! I made a rhyme! Anyway I’m Horde through and through! Been living here since I was a baby, so I don’t care about wolves and vamps and all that. Besides, I don’t even need to transform thanks to ol’ SW!”

“Scorpia I have warned you about using nicknames.” Shadow Weaver reminded her with annoyance. “I give her potions to not transform and lose her mind like those brainless werewolves in the wild. But rest assured, she still maintains her supernatural strength, among other features. Scorpia has been a valuable asset to the Horde for many years now. Hopefully she can teach you a thing or two about respect.”

Catra growled in detest.

“You’re saddling me with a babysitter.” She spat. “For a mission that isn’t even authorized!”

Shadow Weaver’s patience suddenly cracked like the thin ice that Catra was dancing on, and she lurched forward faster than a blink and cracked Catra across the cheek. But rather than go spinning away like before, her head only turned slightly and she barely felt the sting. She buried her own surprise and excitement at her invulnerability with a burning hot poker face glare. 

“The mission is authorized by  _ me _ , your Superior!” She yelled over Catra. “I am your commander first, not to mention the one who converted you! Whether or not Hordak sanctions it will be irrelevant  _ after we have Adora back! _ You will hold your tongue until you have even one successful thing to show for yourself! Now  _ go! _ ”

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


“Come on Adora, let us see!” Glimmer encouraged from the other side of the partition. 

“Okay, just, don’t laugh okay?” Adora said. 

“We won’t!” Bow promised. “But you gotta show us first!”

Adora took a shaky breath and stepped out from around the partition screen in Glimmer’s room. They had given her a change of clothes that first night, but she would need more clothes to build a wardrobe if she wanted to stay more long term. So, after they slept in the day following the full moon, they spent the evening afterwards trying to help Adora get a taste for werewolf style. 

Adora nervously smoothed out her new shirt. These new clothes were certainly different from how things were in the horde, but she found it comfortable and practical. She just knew that she had no sense of style, and worried if that would bite her in the butt with her new friends. 

She wore a red and black plaid flannel shirt, with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and the bottom tucked into gray trousers that were high on the hip supported by simple black suspenders over her shoulders. She still kept her horde boots, as they were familiar to her and sturdy enough to withstand her new lifestyle. 

She let her friends take in her new appearance yet again with a tired smile. 

“Alright, that’s a winner!” Bow gave two thumbs up. Glimmer, sitting in a soft chair, agreed quickly as her eyes became the size of moons and she smiled. Adora wasn’t sure if the redness in Glimmer’s cheeks was a good sign or a bad one. Did she pick something embarrassing? She nervously hooked a finger inside her flannel collar to tug at it slightly, finding it difficult to breath under the attention. 

“A-are you sure?” She asked. Glimmer’s face was red as a tomato as she smiled at Adora. 

“Here, let me,” Bow noticed the tightness of the buttons around her throat and came to help her, but Glimmer immediately flew up from her seat and pushed him aside. 

“I got it!” She said hastily. Adora raised an eyebrow, but allowed Glimmer to come and undo the top few buttons of her shirt. It became more comfortable that way, easier to move and breath. Glimmer’s gaze lingered on the collarbone that she had exposed for perhaps a moment too long as Adora rubbed her neck. 

“Is it supposed to be undone? Why would there be buttons there if you can’t do them?” She asked, totally ignoring Glimmer’s hands resting on her shoulders. 

“Because people who make shirts are squares.” Glimmer said, seeming to snap out of her trance to look up at Adora. The height difference was staggering, and this close to each other she had to crane her neck up to look at Adora. 

“They are?” Adora asked completely genuinely in total fascination. She didn’t know what a Square person was like, but it seemed like a difficult shape to bend a person into. Bow smiled at the connection the two young women shared, staying close to each other for no reason. He rolled his eyes at how obvious Glimmer was being, but also could hardly believe Adora wasn’t picking any of it up. Adora just seemed too distracted all the time to notice Glimmer’s heart on her sleeve, or even her own feelings of closeness with the Princess. 

“What was that!” Adora suddenly turned towards the window, but the movement that caught her eye was gone. She was fully focused, her whole body stiff as Bow chuckled. 

“A squirrel.” He explained. 

“You’re hearing more things, aren’t you?” Glimmer asked. Adora rubbed the back of her neck and cocked her head. 

“How do you guys deal with all these distractions? It’s like--- like everything is happening, all the time.” She struggled to explain.

“You just have to learn how to filter out the important stuff.” Glimmer said. She smiled, showing off her teeth and then it was Adora’s turn to blush. “Bow is the best at it, that’s why he’s the Scout.”

“You mentioned that stuff before, the other night.” Adora said, crossing her arms as she recalled. “And you’re the Princess, right?”

“Yep!” Glimmer beamed. “The Noble is usually the kid of the Alpha. Either a Prince of a Princess. Technically I’m higher ranked than Bow.” She teased, elbowing the boy in the ribs. 

“Hey!” He protested. “There’s no ranks in the Best Friend Squad!”

“And everyone has that kind of role?” Adora pressed on. 

But before they could answer, there was a knock at the door. Without waiting for a reply, a dark skinned woman with raven hair poked her head in politely. 

“Would you prefer lunch before or after your orientation?” She asked Glimmer. 

“After, please!” She answered. “Thanks Nadia!” And the woman, Nadia, left again. Adora wished she had something to eat sooner, she felt famished. 

“Who was that?” Adora asked timidly. “It feels like there’s constantly new people around here.”

“You’ve actually met before, the other night.” Bow corrected her. “Remember that tall black wolf?”

“Oh!” Adora gasped. “That was her?”

“Yes, she’s a part of our pack. Pretty much everyone in the castle is.” Glimmer explained. Adora’s chest felt warm when she said  _ ‘our pack _ ’ in a way that meant she was part of something. “She’s usually always around.”

“What’s her role?”

“She’s the Rook!” Bow said enthusiastically while flexing his arms in a pose. “The Rook is the protector, immovable as a mountain and able to take a hit and keep coming no matter what.”

“She mainly guards the Alpha and the Noble, or my mom and me. Nadia shields the whole pack from harm. She’s really protective and I’ve known her for most of my life.”

Adora nodded in understanding. She wanted to learn everything she could, both about how werewolves operated and how she could get along better with her new pack mates. It felt like she was meeting new people every day, it truly was a large pack. She wondered if werewolves were born into their roles within the pack or if it was assigned to them later based on how they performed. And mostly, she wondered if she could ever find her place here, find a way to help them and fit into the pack with a role of her own. Being the Mountain sounded okay enough, she was a trained fighter since birth. It was no secret in the Crimson Horde that she had been a statistical anomaly in terms of her speed and strength when it came to her peers. It seemed to be something she would do well in, but it didn’t seem like the right fit. Almost like the correct shoe, but on the wrong foot, a good size but uncomfortable. If not that, then what could she be?

“So, ready for some training?” Glimmer snapped her out of her own thoughts in her usual manner, putting an arm around Adora’s shoulders. She had to reach up, so it was an awkward angle, but she grinned all the same.

“Training?” Adora sounded a little too hopeful, eager even, to do what she did best. Perhaps she could even show off a bit, prove to them, Glimmer in particular, that she was capable. 

“You need practice shapeshifting.” Bow explained. “As soon as the sun goes down, we’ll head outside and show you how it's done!”

Adora’s hopefulness evaporated quickly when she remembered that she was now, in fact, a werewolf. And that meant a whole host of new skills to hone rather than practise old drills with ease. She felt a pinch embarrassed at how her transformation had gone the first time. She was so shocked and confused that she couldn’t even maintain it, only having enough time to gawk at her wolf form like an idiot. 

But, that was just another thing she was eager to learn. The list kept building, and she was determined to learn everything she could and prove her worth. Then, maybe, she would be strong enough to help Catra. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


“Oh you have  _ got _ to be kidding me.” Lonnie raised an eyebrow through her scowl but otherwise remained erect at attention alongside her bunkmates. She instantly knew that it was the wrong reaction, however, when Catra smirked in response. 

“Oh Lonnie,” Catra drawled out with all the I’m-more-powerful-than-you-so-I-can-do-whatever-the-hell-I-want gusto she could summon. “Simple Lonnie. Looks like Hordak knows a good vampire candidate when he sees one. And you know as well as I do that there are no take-baksies in the Crimson Horde.”

She and Scorpia faced her old squad, Lonnie, Kyle, and Rogelio. Between the five of them, they always knew that whoever did the best would be made vampire, and the remainder would be the traveling blood bags for that candidate. It kept them working in hard competition with their peers, Adora always first among them, but she was gone. This might be the first good thing to come of Catra’s abandonment, she thought, if it meant ordering these three around. 

Lonnie tried her hardest, but could never beat Adora and Catra, and was always exceedingly open about her resentment in that, especially to Catra. But their superiors only rewarded their bitter rivalries and competitions, believing it to make them stronger. Rogelio was particularly big and strong but only owing to genetics, since otherwise he was very shy. In fact he only ever talked to Kyle, the weakest runt of the bunch. He pretty much knew his place and his fate in the Crimson Horde and didn’t bother fighting it, especially since there wasn’t much he could do with those twig arms. 

Of course, all five of them spent the better half of their formative years being a blood supply to their superiors, namely Shadow Weaver, until one of them changed as candidate. Their only two duties were to give their blood and train to become a vampire. So they knew what they were getting into. They just never imagined that it would be like this: Adora the strong but kind protector of the group gone, and instead serving under Catra the all time grudge-holding champ. They could all tell that this would be no walk in the park. 

“Shadow Weaver changed _ you? _ ” Lonnie challenged. She took a gamble that perhaps Catra would be smart enough to not accidentally maim her source of food with her new powers. “When?”

Catra inspected her claws with the most shit eating grin. It was the first time she had smiled since she had lost Adora. 

“Like I said, with Adora gone looks like Shadow Weaver finally recognized my talent.”

“Uhm! About that!” Kyle nervously spoke up from the end of the line, raising his hand as though to ask a question. “Where.... Is? Adora?” He anxiously withered up under Catra’s commanding look. 

“Adora chose to live in the woods with a bunch of wild animals.” Catra hissed, making sure to show off her fangs. “She abandoned us. Which is why we need to find her. We are going to  _ remind her _ what she left behind.”  _ Who she left behind _ .

“Yup!” Scorpia agreed. “As soon as we finish new vampire orientation, then get Catra fed, we can head out--”

“No, we’re leaving now. Suit up.” Catra commanded over her. “This is top priority.” Scorpia may have been her babysitter, but she wouldn’t let this wolf think she had the upper hand. This was the Crimson Horde, vampire territory. And Scorpia was a wolf, the same thing that was apparently so much better than Catra that it was worth dropping their whole life plan for at the drop of a hat. Shadow Weaver would not control Catra anymore, not now that she had the power to fend for herself. And if Scorpia was with Shadow Weaver, then there was no reason they had to play nice to get along.

“Are you sure, Cat? I mean, earlier with Shadow Weaver you kinda sounded like you didn’t want to do it at all.” Scorpia asked, crossing her arms over her chest and cocking her head. “Besides you really oughta attend the orientation--”

“The more time we waste, the further away they get!” Catra yelled, whirling around on the taller woman. “Adora  _ and _ that stupid pack from the tails town! We leave  _ tonight! _ ”

It had the desired effect on both her squad mates and Scorpia. She knew they were trying to look out for her, and she should probably do what Scorpia had suggested, but she couldn’t afford another failure. Not when so much was suddenly riding on her back with these new duties. So, she swallowed her feelings and smoothed down her hair. And with the final word, she stormed out to allow her underlings to prepare for the field. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora’s lupine form was like the sun: larger than life. Radiant and golden. Strong and intense. 

This form made her smaller, forced down on all fours, closer to the anatomy of wild wolves. Her fur matched her straw colored hair, and became a lighter creme color at her underbelly. It was accented with darker, bold stripes of darker yellow on her paws that faded upwards, as well as across her back in a cape of gold. Her eyes were blue, the color of her irises spreading to cover them. As far as wolves went, she was beyond a handsome creature. Symmetrical, distinct, graceful. 

Once she got the hang on turning into a wolf, she just had to learn how to be a wolf. Because the first thing she did when she tried to step forward was fall on her face. And Glimmer realized that all the grace in the world didn’t mean a thing to a biped going on four paws for the first time in their life. 

“You guys said you wouldn’t laugh,” Adora whined a little self consciously as she picked herself up. Glimmer could tell from the way her long limbs moved that she was having trouble coordinating four feet at once. Her ears pushed backwards over her head and she smacked her chops, unused to talking with so many teeth in her mouth. 

“I wasn’t laughing at you, sorry Adora.” Bow clarified. “I was laughing at Glimmer.”

“What? Bow!” She instantly chastised him with a smack of her own pink paw over his face. 

“Come on admit it, you’re totally staring!”

“Wha--why would I be?” Glimmer’s obvious lie fell flat when her pack mate rolled her eyes. 

“Yeah, why?” Adora asked, totally oblivious to the giant point they had made as the meaning flew by her. “Am I doing something wrong? Do I look funny?” She looked down at herself nervously. 

“No, you look great.” Glimmer comforted Adora and herself with the subject change. “Actually you look amazing. Better than amazing!”

“Yeah, Glimmer’s right, there’s nothing to be ashamed about. Buuuut you do need to learn how to walk.”

Adora tried to step forward again, keeping in mind all four of her limbs and even her tail this time. But with so much she could smell and hear and see and taste around them, staying focused on her own body became difficult. She ended up overcompensating by lifting each paw far higher than it needed to be in the air, making a wide arc away from her body as she wobbled uneasily. It was rather reminiscent of putting socks on a dog the first time, the way they lifted up to shake them off awkwardly, and this time he did laugh at Adora. The distraction made her freeze in place this time rather than tumble over, which she considered to be a strength. 

Her muzzle showed remarkable human emotion in her concentration in the moment as she maneuvered herself to gently lay in the grass. The sun warmed her golden pelt and she groaned in annoyance. She wasn’t used to not being able to do things. She was always the top of her class, excelling in new activities usually came as easily as breathing to her. She never struggled, and she would be damned if her tail tripped her up again. 

Glimmer lay down next to her, nose to nose in a relaxed way. She smiled at the larger wolf--did she mention she was big? Cause she was big. Big enough to make it as a Rook no problem-- and her lavender eyes looked into Adora’s sky blue ones. The dusk light reflected in her fur and eyes like she was made of a sunset. 

Adora picked her head up off the ground and shook her head. Her perfect golden tuft stayed in place as her ears flopped about. 

“The first time it seemed easier. I could walk upright.” She lamented, trying to solve the puzzle in her mind. “And you guys, you look different now than you did when you transformed back in the village.” She was here to learn, one way or another. Perhaps receiving a lesson from her mentors while she tried to move would help distract all the other senses.

Bow trotted over to the pair and joined them in the grass as he took charge in explaining, seeing as how Glimmer was still enraptured by Adora’s rounded tuft of fur on her head. How  _ did _ it stay so fluffed up all the time, no matter the form she took?

“There’s different forms you can take. It depends on your energy, and the moon.” Bow explained. “Sometimes you’re big and strong, sometimes not so much.” He said, moving his head side to side with each explanation. 

“There’s more than one way?” She asked. She had assumed that werewolves knew how to become stronger, but she had to learn first that there were many routes to power. And more than that, that strength comes in many different forms. But, it made sense given how she had seen Glimmer and Bow over the past few days. They were as big as horses when they first met, then bipedal in the village, and now looked like regular wild wolves. 

“Come on, let’s see if we can get you walking.” Bow smiled kindly. He was such a kind young boy, it was in his nature to be comforting and gracious. And yet, nothing was more comforting to Adora than Glimmer, and the sound of her voice as she agreed. 

“You know how you swing your arms when you walk or run?” She said. They all stood up, and Glimmer and Bow sandwiched Adora between them, guiding her and not letting her fall over. “Think of it like that. Instead of four feet.” 

Adora’s face turned forward in concentration. Bow and Glimmer pressed into each of her sides, their warmth and smell around her a soothing reassurance. So, she took a deep breath and took a few hesitant steps. 

She didn’t seem to fall on her face again, so they guided her forward, providing equal pressure on each side as the three moved forward together. The feeling of their fur rubbing against her own was a strangely new feeling, but not altogether unwanted. It felt nice, like snuggling in a blanket. 

“You two make it look so easy,” Adora commented. She had a lot to learn before she was ready to face any vampires. In the back of her mind, she thought about how Catra would tease her playfully for her stumbles, and her heart ached for her missing companion.

“You’ll get the hang of it!” Bow encouraged her. 

She was able to go several paces with confidence, aided and cheered on by her friends. They started to ease away from her sides as she picked up her pace, her paws moving like parts of a machine without thought rather than four separate maneuvers. She smiled with her tongue out to Glimmer with pride. 

“Now we’re talkin!” Glimmer beamed. “I’ll race you back to the castle!” She suddenly took off ahead of them before they could protest. 

“Slow down, we still--” Bow tried to argue but Adora shot off in a full run, so he rolled his eyes and followed suit. 

Adora could see the peak of the castle on the horizon in the distance, rising above the treeline from its hilltop. The longer she ran, the more accustomed to the movement she became and she flew across the woods without even having to think about it. She caught up with Glimmer and Bow, and together the three of them weaved their way through the undergrowth, swerving around trees and threading long trails around each other. 

Adora’s wide paws scraped up dirt in her path as she tore through the forest grounds, her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth in a sloppy, dorky grin at the new power she felt with confidence. She loved it, running together with her pack, pushing herself through the woods as fast as the wind. Soon she was even able to surpass Bow and Glimmer with her longer legs, high on the power of the rising moon in the dusty sky. 

She felt alive, full of energy, bursting from the elation of moving through the woods with her friends, and she felt like she would explode from joy at the sensation of their run.

Her legs moved in perfect synchronization without any second thought. She loved the feeling of the wind combing through her dense fur, giving her tingles of delight all across her skin. 

When she caught up to the palace gate again, she whirled around to see Bow and Glimmer close on her tail, and she jumped in joy. She put her elbows on the ground and her rear in the air, unsure of what the gesture meant in human words but knowing that her canine instincts wanted her to do what felt right, and that was to play. She had gone all her life without supernatural power, she wasn’t about to not use it at every opportunity. She was even more eager to learn more now that she was moving, thanks to her animal instincts that seemed to be waking up from a slumber within her, roused by the moonlight. Her grin reached her pack mates. 

“Nice!” Bow kept running so he could barrel straight into Adora, knocking her over in a playful mock fight. She laughed as they tussled and Glimmer joined in. They batted each other with their paws, snapped their teeth and kept tackling and spinning on each other until the last of the sunlight was gone from the sky. Adora didn’t know much about what she was doing, but she knew it felt good. It was like the comfort of a familiar routine with those she loved, a whole new flavor of affection that she never knew existed. But she followed her friends’ lead in their roughhousing, and though she didn’t know what she was doing she was still able to hold her own against them thanks to her larger size. 

It only seemed like a moment before someone called to them from the castle that their supper was prepared. Hours had passed and Adora felt it wear down on her all of a sudden as they stopped. She breathed in and out, eyes closed as she lay down to catch her breath. When she opened her eyes again she lay down with her red and black flannel, her suspenders slightly askew, with the largest grin on her face. The first thing she saw was Glimmer’s face looking down on her. 

“Mind if I just, take a nap right here real quick?” Adora breathed out, earning a chuckle from her friends. Glimmer shook her head and held out a hand to help Adora up. 

“Werewolf 101 session isn’t complete yet. You still have to learn the most important thing about transformations.”

“What’s that?” Adora asked as she took Glimmer’s hand and got up, even though she almost accidentally pulled Glimmer down with her unchecked strength. 

“Food!” Bow cheered. “Specifically lots of protein.”

“It takes a lot of energy to transform.” Glimmer explained as they all walked back. “The bigger your form, the more energy you need, the more food and yes, protein, you need to get as soon as possible.”

“So this is only the minimum?” She asked. She felt exhausted all over, and now that she was thinking about food she realized her stomach was growling from their run. “It’ll only get  _ more _ tiring than this?”

Glimmer grinned wolfishly at her, linking their arms. Adora thought nothing of it as she stumbled back to her new home. 

“Don’t worry, you’ll get the hang of it.” She promised. 

Adora was filled with resolve, eager to prove herself to her pack still even if she was daunted at the physical taxation on her body and mind. She would persevere just like she had with training drills in the horde, and come out stronger. Even with all this new power, there was still more strength to gain every day. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Catra reached down and touched the earth. The smell was overpowering, thanks to her new senses, to the point of overwhelming. But she still got closer to the dirt to examine the tracks. 

The smell of sweat was the strongest, mixed with mineral tap water. Catra could make out the familiar Adora musk in her scent, from always working out and training. Some things never changed. 

But there were also new smells mixed in with it. Pine cones, animal stink. The smell of a wolf pack. Some things had changed. And based on the smell and the fact that there were no human footprints, Adora had changed. 

The paw prints were varied in size but there was no mistake, Adora was here. Her smell was familiar enough to Catra that she would recognize it even if she was a werewolf now. 

So she not only turned her back on her home and her family, Catra realized. She’s a full blown traitor now. She’s actively seeking out aid from the enemy of her people. It twisted hot and angry within Catra’s gut, making an uneasy feeling. Her hands shook in rage. Adora could have abandoned them, could have abandoned her, and just lived out her days in some village. But no. She had to become the very thing that they swore to destroy. And now that Catra was a vampire that meant...

They would be rivals now. 

Should she have gone with Adora when she offered back in the village?

She shook her head to get rid of her weak thoughts. There was no use dwelling on that now. Although...

No, _no_! She had a mission. And she was going to prove to Shadow Weaver and Hordak and everyone that she was enough. That she was strong enough on her own and didn’t need Adora’s help. That she was a good soldier for the Crimson Horde. That she was enough, better even. 

Even if Adora had moved on like she was nothing. 

“Hey Cat!” 

Catra rolled her eyes and stood up as Scorpia came fumbling out of the bushes to catch up rather noisily. Her three human blood bags wouldn’t be far behind. 

“Wow you are really getting the hang of this vampire thing quickly, huh!” Scorpia continued, nearly tripping on her own feet as she came behind Catra. “I mean even without the new vampire Orientation! I mean, you are fast!”

Catra turned on her heel to glare up at the much taller woman. Her patience was wearing thin with this wolf, even if she didn’t consider herself a werewolf. At this point, Catra was certain that Shadow Weaver specifically requested Scorpia’s help babysitting her knowing that Scorpia would push all of Catra’s buttons. And it was working. 

“Scorpia.” She deadpanned. “Aren’t you supposed to be a werewolf? Shouldn’t you be able to keep up better in a forest?” But to Catra’s disappointment, Scorpia laughed as though they were making a joke, the true cruelty of her teasing having gone over her head. 

“What can I say, I usually always stay in the Fright Zone!” She laughed, clapping a strong hand on Catra’s shoulder and almost knocking the wind out of her. If it wasn’t for her new strength she might have knocked the smaller woman to the ground. 

Catra pinched the space between her brows as she bit her tongue for another cutting remark. At the same time, Lonnie, Rogelio, and Kyle stumbled out from the direction that Scorpia had come from. 

“Hey I know you two can see in the dark but come on,” Lonnie complained. “We’re only mortal! Slow down!”

The night was still young, not yet to midnight. Catra knew that she couldn’t go out in the sun ever again, and they all traveled by night, as was their nocturnal habit. For the cadets, it was their first time out of the Fright Zone in their careers. 

“I don’t need you all to follow me around constantly, I told you to stay at the camp!” Catra grumbled impatiently. 

“I know, I hear ya. Loud and clear!” Scorpia defended them. “But it’s been a full day since you’ve turned and you still haven’t had anything to, you know...” She rubbed her neck and looked away, squeamish at the image of Catra sucking down blood. She didn’t quite know of a polite way to say it. 

“Scorpia’s right,” Lonnie said, crossing her arms. “If you don’t eat soon you’re gonna go crazy. We all know it. We just don’t know why you’ve been putting it off.”

In truth, Catra was scared. She had been used for blood by Shadow Weaver ever since she was old enough, and it wasn’t necessarily a fun experience from her end. Now that she was the vampire in the relationship, she was filled with dread at her first feeding. 

She always thought that Adora would be there for her, that they could navigate the strange new waters together. But that wasn’t in the cards any more. 

But Lonnie was right, she was hungry. It was different from hunger that she used to feel as a mortal, this felt more like an ache in her chest rather than a twinge in her belly. It was a certain type of anguish like an open wound, one that she knew exactly how to treat to ease the sting. If she could just satisfy that ache she would feel better, but she knew what it entailed. And even if the other three held animosity for her in the past it still felt strange to hurt them on purpose while they couldn’t do anything. And at the same time, her skin crawled with yearning for blood. Tasting it for the first time would be to really admit it, to really admit that she was a vampire now. Not that she was in denial, but it seemed to happen so fast and she had hoped that it would feel more special. But she never got what she wanted. 

Catra grit her teeth in frustration, a feat that was harder now with her new fangs taking up space in her mouth. Her hands balled into fists and she looked down sadly. 

“We need to find somewhere to hide from the sunlight before sunrise.” She determined. “Once we set up camp there, then I’ll take a break and…” She had scoffed at Scorpia for not being able to say it in a way that wasn’t creepy, but now she struggled with pushing past the words in her throat. “Just try to keep up until then.” 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora learned so much over her days at Bright Moon that she thought she would never comprehend it all. 

Adora learned the names of her pack mates, of which there were many. They held positions of protection, hunting, attack, border defense. They all regarded her suspiciously, especially Nadia, who was particularly protective of the Alpha and Glimmer. The more she observed the other members of her pack, the more she realized that they all acted like a big family. They were intimate with each other, unafraid of casual touching. They all supported each other, helping out in every little way they could. They all joked and laughed loudly. It portrayed a sense of comfort and familiarity, one she wanted to be a part of. 

Adora learned that “mom” was not, in fact, a werewolf way of saying “ma’am.” She had learned this after an embarrassing meeting with the Queen. Upon further questions they found out that Adora thought “mom” was a word for a superior officer, similar to how Shadow Weaver was for her and her fellow cadets. They corrected her that no, that’s not what ‘mom’ is. Adora then shyly asked what a mom was and Angella could feel her heart rip in half, and decided right there that Adora deserved better. It was a combination of maternal instincts and leader instincts as a pack Alpha that drove her to try and protect Adora, and provide a safe home for her after whatever it was she had already been though. This made Adora a bit uncomfortable and embarrassed, but at least she was bonding with her pack. 

Adora learned how to fight, as a werewolf, from Glimmer and Bow. She spent most of her time with Glimmer, thinking that perhaps it was a bond that came from the fact that it was the Princess who had transformed her. Her sire, in a way, who had brought her into the pack. Adora was quick to learn everything Glimmer taught her, becoming an excellent fighter and hunter in the grounds that were closest to Bright Moon castle. She got the hang of her new body, her new strength, and all her new senses in no time. And in return, she showed her pack mates how to hold a fight in human form better, in hand to hand. 

Adora learned that there were various different forms that the werewolves could take. The strongest of them was the bipedal form, with big clawed hands, the same that she had seen in action that night in the village during the attack. It was the strongest and mightiest of all their forms, but at the cost that her mental acuity would drop. She would still be there underneath it, but buried by her animal instincts and unable to speak verbally. Glimmer and her mother were an exception to this trade-off, something about how their bloodline was immune to certain effects based on the age of their family and their special relationship to the moon. Adora didn’t quite understand it, but she had an idea that it had something to do with an artifact that the whole pack cherished as a symbol of their heritage, the Moon Stone. The second form they could take was several times larger than a normal wolf, walking on all fours. She had seen this in action the night that she met Glimmer and Bow, when they attacked her and took her hostage. It was very strong, and she would be able to keep most of her coherence. The third form was the appearance of a regular wild wolf, just like the day she had run through the woods with her new friends. She would be totally mentally aware and easily able to communicate verbally, with the trade-off that it was far less strong. It was mainly for stealth, travel, and scouting. So, she always had to choose between a powerful body or an aware mind, or risk falling to her basic instincts. 

Adora learned that the bigger the form she took, the more energy it would take to transform. So the biggest form was the hardest to accomplish, and the smaller she was the easier it would be. She learned that the full moon would account for most of her energy when it came to transforming. The rest would rely on food and rest, plus practise. Just like exercising a muscle, the more she continued to try, the easier it would become. She learned that after the transformations, she would need to eat lots of meat and protein and sleep it off. She learned that due to the high demand for meat, Bright Moon’s primary income was fowl livestock. They kept chickens, turkeys, geese, all sorts of animals that Adora had never seen before in her life. Such things were kept from her in the Horde. 

And, Adora continued to learn more about how the vampires conducted themselves across Etheria. It was like a grim curiosity to her, the same kind that makes it difficult to look away from a wound, one where it made her sick and depressed but she needed to know. She learned that vampires would kidnap people on the New Moon, when the werewolves were at their weakest. They targeted young healthy individuals and they were never seen or heard from again. She learned that vampires could drink all the blood in a person until they were dry as a raisin, killing them, in only about an hour. She had never known the vampires to take more than a few pints, but it was clear that in the field, they took what they wanted with glutton. She learned that they captured whole towns with military efficiency, and kept the humans trapped there as their own personal livestock. 

The more she learned, the more determined she became to stop them. Not just to fight them like the pack did, but to put an end to their reign of terror and make sure they never hurt anybody again. 

And when Adora was not learning so much new information that her head might explode, she thought back to Catra. 

She hadn’t seen her friend since that night in the village. She dreaded what would happen to her for failing to retrieve Adora, especially after she learned more about how cruel the vampires were to the mortals who stood in their way. She cried when she thought for a horrible moment that Catra might have been dead, and she didn’t know how she would cope without her, much less knowing that it was her fault. But Glimmer was there to cuddle her all night as she sobbed her worries out, wrapping her pink fluffy body around Adora comfortingly and letting her let go of all the pain she was holding in. After that night she tried to convince herself that Catra could still be alive, and determined to rescue her from the heart of the Fright Zone as her first step in taking down the Crimson Horde. She convinced herself and her friends that if she could make sure Catra was okay, then she would be okay. 

And at night, she thought of memories of her old home. The sunlight in her hair, the way she could walk without making a sound, her eyes. Her smell was so much stronger in Adora’s memories now, perhaps due to her new senses. But the soft earthy scent of her memories was enhanced to a specific flavor of Catra. Earth and dust, copper and mineral rich water. She smelled like the sun on a warm patch of earth. In a way Catra had been the very ground on which Adora stood for most of her life. She was reliable but not infallible. Catra was down to earth in every way, not bothering to let herself get distracted by anything. Always focused on the task at hand. Adora’s world revolved around Catra, and she wouldn’t fully rest until she knew that her oldest friend was safe. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


By the time Catra was prepared to take blood for the first time rather than giving it, she was starting to feel different. She could hear all their hearts pounding, overlapping thumping in their chests as they all moved around. The sound of the beating was drowning out every other sound at their camp, she could barely hear them speaking. Her fangs ached and her gums itched, eager to feed, and she didn’t get any relief at all from clamping her jaw tightly shut. Her fingers twitched in anticipation, following the movement of each heart in her vision, completely dissociating to her surroundings until all she saw was vague shapes that carried a heartbeat. Scorpia was right, she should have fed sooner. She surely looked like a half dead madman, staring at them all and not hearing their words. 

Eventually they were able to ask her if she had a preference for who to start with. She would use them in rotation as their blood recovered from each feeding. One today, one another week, then one the next week. After that it would be a cycle, allowing them weeks to recover before they were fed on again. 

Catra chose Lonnie. Not because of her hatred for her peer, there was no desire to punish her for the bullying she had endured. Not anymore. Now, all she wanted was to eat. And the only other thing she wanted was Adora. 

She wanted Adora so badly it hurt. And Lonnie was not Adora. But she was athletic, and strong, and maybe she could pretend. Pretend that her best friend hadn’t abandoned her when she was most needed. She could forget that she wanted Adora to be with her for the first time and ease her worries. She wanted Adora to help guide her through it. But she wasn’t here. 

They sat privately in a shaded area under an overhanging cliff, inside a tent, when she tasted blood for the first time. Lonnie started by sitting on the ground and offering her wrist, but Catra batted it away and went for the neck. It was a desperate movement, but not altogether strange for a vampire, depending on their need. Lonnie allowed her to bite into her throat under the ear, knowing how desperate Catra was for her first feeding. The pain stung at first, then dulled as the venom seeped from Catra’s fangs automatically to ease the pain for her host. 

As soon as it hit her tongue, it became the only thing in the world to her. The only thing she could taste, the only thing she could see or smell was blood, a sweet crimson ichor that she craved with every fiber of her being. She sucked it up hungrily, she had never known satisfaction like this before in her life. With every drop she imbibed she felt waves of relief flood her tired system. She forgot about Adora. She even forgot about Lonnie. She drank until she finally felt she could relax. When she did, she leaned back in a haze. She didn’t notice that Lonnie was weak on the floor in front of her, close to sleeping. She would be alright. She could tell from the steady beat of her heart. Catra licked up the errant drops that had dribbled on her chin and hands, savoring the rich taste. It brought her even more fulfilment and contentment. The ache of her thirst died away to a distant memory in place of extreme comfort and relaxation. 

She wished she could have fallen asleep after. It felt like the right thing to do after a satisfaction like that. She had always wondered if vampires could really sleep if they tried hard enough; perhaps they didn’t need to and that’s why they didn’t. But she soon found that it was impossible, no matter what. She was forced to stay awake during the burning hours of day, and her relief was replaced with torment. She wanted nothing more than to sleep, but she could not. And she couldn’t even go out and use up her pent up energy from the feeding, she was a prisoner to darkness or else the sun would burn her up in minutes. Lonnie eventually woke up and exited to find food to replenish her blood, joining the other three outside. A werewolf and three humans could have all the fun in the sun they wanted, but they wouldn’t be able to go anywhere or do anything until the sun set and Catra could walk freely in the cover of night. 

So she had no choice. But to sulk alone. And think about Adora. Even after, she still wished that her idiot was there for her. Even if she didn’t need her. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora was advancing quickly in her training, quickly enough that she soon surpassed Bow and then Glimmer in fights. She was a fast learner and a quick thinker, and her power and size certainly didn’t hurt. She was able to pin the both of them when they teamed up against her, happily wagging her tail with pride. She was quickly rising in the ranks of the pack from the New Recruit to a formidable fighter. 

Still, she insisted on training every day. And she dragged Glimmer with her to help. 

They tousled and snapped their jaws, kicking their legs and growling as they trained in the courtyards of Bright Moon. Glimmer was a strong werewolf, owing partly to her bloodline. She was fast, and wasn’t afraid to play dirty at times. Adora loved every moment of it, both for the closeness that it gave her and Glimmer and the way she could show off how well she was doing against her Princess. 

Eventually, they ended like they usually do, with Glimmer pinned down beneath Adora’s wide golden paws, looking up into sparkling blue eyes. Adora panted happily, her tongue hanging down and her mouth pulling up in a smile. Glimmer was enchanted with her face, as she usually found herself. Both her human and all her wolf forms were extremely likeable, perfect even. 

“You win again.” She said casually, trying to sound annoyed in order to distract from how very gay she was feeling. The brilliance of the sunset behind them could never rival the radiance of Adora’s smile.

Then Adora lowered her head slightly and chomped her mouth down around Glimmer’s muzzle. A playful sign of affection she had picked up between pack mates, a sort of prank that didn’t allow them to speak while they breathed in stinky dog breath. It was a way to show that one had bested the other.

“Adora!” Glimmer complained in a muffled sound, squinting in genuine annoyance now at the larger wolf. Adora was just too proud of herself. But, she did eventually release Glimmer when they heard Nadia call them in to speak with the Queen. 

Adora shifted back as quickly as she could exhale calmly, then helped Glimmer to her feet. They dusted themselves off and walked back to the castle together. 

“You know, I’ve been thinking about how you fight.” Glimmer said. “And I’ve seen you trying to hunt. So focused on what’s ahead of you, so eager to make the first move.”

“Okay?” Adora said, tilting her head in confusion. 

“I think I know what your role is in the pack.” She explained, smiling her pearly whites on display. Adora loved Glimmer in every form, especially right after a transformation when her hair was still all messed up, and yet still shimmering with sparkles like the moon. “You’re the sword!”

“Whoooah!” Adora said. Then she stopped. “Wait, what is that?”

“You’ve heard of hand weapons like swords before, right?”

“Yeah, I just never heard of it being a title for anyone in the pack.” Adora said. She had kept careful track of everyone’s roles within the pack, wondering where she would end up designated. “Nobody else in the pack is a sword.”

“Well as Princess of the coolest pack on the planet, I think I get to design my own roles sometimes.” Glimmer said slyly. She stuck out her tongue at Adora. 

“Wait you made that up?” Adora was too enchanted by Glimmer’s creative commitment to her, that she would do something like this, for  _ her _ , to notice Glimmer teasing her a bit. 

“The Sword should be the person who acts on their morals, the one who acts first when they see something wrong, even if it is without thinking.” Glimmer explained. She grabbed Adora’s hand in one of her own, gently rubbing her thumb over the pack of Adora’s. “And that’s what you do. Even though it was hard, you acted to do the right thing and join the pack. And then to become a werewolf. And in all the little things.” She said earnestly. Adora blushed, feeling the heat rising to her face. By now they were at the doorway to the castle, about to enter, but they both wanted to keep this moment for a few seconds longer. 

“So I’m a Sword?”

“Yeah. If that’s okay.”

“I--yes, of course!” She stammered nervously. “Thank you, Glimmer!”

A sword. The mighty symbol of a warrior. That’s what Adora was trying to become, someone who protects the weak and fights off darkness and evil. Someone who does the right thing when faced with adversity and works to protect her pack and their territory. The kind of person that Catra deserved. The kind of person that Glimmer deserved. 

“Adora, Glimmer.” Angella suddenly appeared in the doorway, eyeing them suspiciously holding hands as they hesitated at the gateway. 

“Mom!” Glimmer quickly pulled away and put both her hands behind her back nervously. “Uh, what’s up?” She added perhaps a bit too casually to cover up. 

“I actually wanted to speak with Adora.” She explained, folding her hands elegantly in front of herself. Adora startled just slightly at hearing her name. 

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Come with me.” She beckoned. Adora followed without question, not even looking back at Glimmer as she focused on what she could have done to get in trouble that would warrant a talk. 

They walked into the heart of the castle, the throne room with an incredible stained glass dome overhead at least fifty feet wide. Each panel was in soft blues and purples, the colors of the kingdom and the pack. It depicted a circular diagram of various moon cycles. 

Adora had seen it before, but it never got old. It was truly a work of art, always dazzling full of brilliant light, day and night. Angella was looking up at it too, which is why Adora put her attention to it. 

At the full moon, there was a turquoise stone, round and flat to match the tiled glass, which was in between the full moon and a depiction of a white furred werewolf with its arms spread as though receiving from it. It’s face was calm as it looked up at the moon, reaching out its hands to show its form to the stone and the moon, laid bare. Adora now knew that this stone was the sacred Moon Stone, the symbol of her pack. 

“The full moon is nearly upon us.” Angella stated calmly, looking at the snowy pelted werewolf fondly. “It will be your first full moon since joining our pack.” 

She held her palms facing upwards and her head tilted back as she basked in the radiance of the light shining through the moonstone. Adora could feel its strength in the air like static, but a cold sensation like the night around her. 

“I wanted to explain what you might expect, so that you might be better prepared.” She continued. “On the full moon, you will transform into your largest and strongest form. It will be easy given the strength from the moon. However it comes with a price.”

“The trade off.” Adora finished, looking wary. She rubbed her neck anxiously. She wasn’t sure what it would feel like to lose herself to her instincts, go full wolf form. 

“Exactly.” Angella nodded. “You will become as close to wild as they come, I’m afraid. You, Bow, and the rest of the pack. Everyone except me and my daughter, thanks to our bloodline’s connection to the Moon Stone. And on that night, we will hunt together. We will defend our territory’s borders. We will run as one, as a pack, together.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad...” Adora saidly softly. Angella smiled at her. She had grown fond of this wayward pup that found her pack. 

“It will be exhilarating beyond comparison.” She confirmed, trying to ease her doubts. “And after you have hunted and feasted and run with us, you will truly be a member of our pack. Are you prepared?”

“Yes.” Adora said without hesitation. There was a fire in her eyes and a brightness in her determined face. Angella smiled again at her. 

“Then you should rest while you can.” She said, putting a hand on Adora’s shoulder. For a while, Adora would flinch away from the contact, but now she took it in stride. “The full moon is tomorrow, you’ll need your strength.

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Catra had been tracking the pack’s movements for days. Her elite smell and sensitive eyesight were paramount to her search, making it too easy to track the movement of the many individuals of the pack through the massive expanse of the woods. Whenever she lost the trail, Scorpia would pick up the pace, her smell even stronger as a werewolf even if she remained in a human shaped form. She had grown used to tuning out the prattle of her babysitter as they camped out and followed the pack, her three human blood bags close behind. 

She had been skirting the edges of a certain territory for a while now, hoping that it wouldn't be true. Unfortunately it was: Adora was with the pack in the heart of their territory in the castle on top of the hill. With a single leap, she bounded thirty feet up in the air, and at the apex grabbed onto a pine tree trunk so she could survey the horizon. She was getting the hang of all this new power, and using it generously at every opportunity. She could jump over yawning chasms, snap an old hardwood in half with one hand, move faster than any animal she encountered. It was an awesome power, and yet she still hadn’t found the upper limit of what she could do. Everything came easily, she didn’t even need to push herself to see how far she could go. It was a little frightening, thinking of all the power at her fingertips, but she quickly learned how to use it to her advantage. 

She scanned over the hills covered in dense woodland in all directions. To the North was the largest hill, crowned with a sparkling glass castle. She scoffed at how vulnerable and noticeable it was. Adora must have been incredibly stupid to live there, being so exposed. 

Catra calmly released the branches and went into a free fall all the way back down to the ground. She made a crater in the dirt when she landed, her body more sturdy than the stone beneath her, and it made a tremor rumble for miles from the impact. She stood up and dusted herself off, completely unbothered. 

“You were right, she’s with the pack.” She said bitterly, looking away from Scorpia. “She must be in the heart of their territory.”

“Well I guess we’ll have to camp out and wait.” Scorpia said, still her usual cheery self despite the devastating power display or the clear threat of heading straight into the heart of enemy territory. “The full moon is tomorrow night, wouldn’t want to get in a tangle with a whole pack.”

“No. We’re pressing on.” Catra stated. Over the few days they had been travelling together she was able to do as she set out to and assert herself as the leader of the group, despite Scorpia being here to supervise her. 

“What, really? Are you sure?” Scorpia finally started to seem nervous. “I mean it’s not just that we’ll be outnumbered, they’ll all be hyper souped up on moon power.” 

“I’m not asking you to come if you’re too scared.” Catra threatened. “The fewer people that come the better. Stay at camp with the cadets if you want. But I’m going in. The castle will be empty and the wolves will be half out of their own stupid animal minds anyway.”

“Gee I don’t know… are you sure you’ll be safe?” She asked, as though she didn’t just see Catra make a crater in the earth a moment ago. “You’re stronger now, but you aren’t invincible. What if something happens?”

“I don’t care.” Catra said, facing off towards the castle in the distance. “I’m going into the pack territory. I’m going to find Adora, and I won’t wait until the full moon has passed to try.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this update was late!! I'm planning a wedding while also being quite sick for a few days (nothing dire, just had some bad pork). I'll try to get rolling on the next chapter soon. Give me your comments with feedback, I love knowing what the readers are thinking! 
> 
> Also BIG happy birthday!!! To the lovely Artofkace!!! Who's art inspired this fic!! Go say happy birthday on tumblr for them, or donate to their kofi!! Kace you are so talented and an inspiration to us all, I hope you're having a great bday!!!


	4. The Sun and The Earth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the full moon; Adora is about to find out what it's like to go Full Wolf Instincts while Catra finds herself trapped in the heart of pack territory. Fate brings them together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry that it took me over a month to get this out. Really, I wanted to work on it so much more than I ended up being able to. But also, it's been hard to focus on anything lately. I'm working through some stuff and I may have to lose my mother soon... its been a hard time on me and my family. My mother and I have always been close. And now, she's been in the hospital for over a month with kidney and liver problems. Things are looking bleak.
> 
> But that doesn't mean that I should have dropped this project or let you all down when you are all blameless. I will still continue this fic. The updates may become irregular and scattered, but it's still going to be in progress. Haven't abandoned a fic yet. 
> 
> SO, without further ado, take this emotional roller coaster of a chapter and enjoy.

It was an important night. Adora knew it was an important night for her, being her first full moon hunt with her pack of Bright Moon, but she felt like it was important for the pack too. She could feel it in the air, and she wasn’t sure if it was her own anticipation or the effects of the weak moonbeams that were starting to rise, making her skin crawl with electric hot energy. 

She could feel the magic in the wind, making her bones ache for activity, wanting to run full sprint and not stop. Her gums ached like she wanted to chew into taffy. She could already tell how the weak effect of the rising full moon was affecting her senses. While it took her a while to get used to hearing and smelling and seeing in the dark, she was starting to get a better hold on those canine instincts. This however, felt like it was new to her all over again. 

The crisp sounds of crunching leaves, bending and breaking into powder under her feet from the cool air. The sweet smells of the forest and all the life that it promised, full of animals and fruits and flowers and overwhelmed with pine needles. There was an aroma of a campfire, a few kilometres north towards the nearest village. She couldn’t see the smoke rising in the low light of the dusk, but she smelled the ashy burning fragrances. 

She closed her eyes, letting her ears fill in the visuals around her. There was so much at first it was difficult to draw it down to the important things. There was the ever present whisper of the wind in the trees, a steady baseline for all the sounds she had learned over her weeks here. The animals were trickier to determine, their light little claws barely touching the rough bark of the trees as they moved, but Adora could just barely make out the ---

“ADORA!” Glimmer crashed into her side and knocked the breath out of the young werewolf. Adora stumbled and caught herself while Glimmer laughed. Adora smiled. She loved the sounds of the forest but she delighted much more in the pitch of her friend’s laughter. 

“Glim, you startled me!” She playfully shoved back. That might have been the top five things Adora loved most about the pack that was different from the Horde: the constant casual touches. An anchor against the tidal wave of senses and power. A steady need to connect, even playfully, in every member of the pack that she lacked in the Fright Zone. “I was doing that senses thing you taught me. I think I’m getting better at it.” She said proudly, like a child showing off a somersault to an adult, full of enthusiastic young glee. “Where’s Bow?” 

Glimmer stretched her arms above her head. Some of the werewolves of her pack were outside with them, in anticipation of the night’s hunt, and were getting ready themselves. 

“He’s the Scout, he’s already out, you know, scouting!”

“Oh right, that makes sense.” Adora said a bit embarrassed, but still with a smile on her face. Now that she thought about it, she could almost barely remember Bow saying something about checking out the borders of their territory before reporting to the Queen, who would then lead her pack out based on the report. But it was hazy in Adora’s memory, perhaps because at the time she had been distracted by something far more concerning about her pack. Or at least one pack mate in particular who had just transformed back to normal and was inhaling the better half of a roast turkey from the spit. They had just finished another training session, one where Adora proved once again how quickly she was advancing and even surpassing her mentor. 

Adora felt like every moment she spent with the princess, she would come to the realization of  _ wow. She really is beautiful isn’t she? _ But not just Beautiful. She was cunning, quick as a whip. Headstrong and fiery. Clever and talented. Amazing. She was amazing. Adora felt as though she had a small epiphany every day as she realized this all over again with every interaction. 

That, and at this moment in particular, she had no idea it was physically possible to devour a turkey so ravenously to look in equal parts terrifying and cute. 

So, she had no idea what sounds were coming out of Bow’s mouth last night when he explained his important role as a Scout. 

Which was fine, as it turned out, since it seemed simple enough to bring it to one sentence by Glimmer. 

Glimmer. 

Amazing Glimmer. 

“So you already prepared for what’s going to happen, right?” Glimmer continued, throwing an arm around Adora’s shoulders. Given their great height difference, Adora had to crouch down slightly to accommodate. “It’s your first time. Are you nervous?”

Adora swallowed while she thought about it. There were too many feelings, too many emotions, too many senses for her to filter out how she was feeling. It was all like a big pot of anticipation. 

“Yes and no.” She said. “I’m excited. The whole pack is here. And I feel like I really am a part of something here.” She said looking over the strong and experienced people around her who were stretching in preparation. “But I also don’t know what it will be like to... lose myself.” Glimmer nodded understandingly. 

It was something Adora had worried about since she first learned about the relationship between her strength and her mind. The bigger her form, the more her canine instincts would take over for her, the less clearly she would be able to think until she essentially became the wolf. 

“You have no reason to worry.” Glimmer comforted her for the hundredth time. “Underneath it all, no matter what, it will still be you.”

“She’s right,” One of their pack mates nearby, Owen, chimed in. He gave Adora a reassuring thumbs up and a cheesy grin. She had gotten to know the pack better by now and knew that Owen had been the previous Newest Member until she joined. Her admission to the Pack was a promotion for him to the role of Grounds Guard. He was topless, showing off and preparing for the revelry of hunting with the pack. “Canine instincts are what keep you alive out there sometimes. So you better hope they take over!” He joked. 

Adora liked to hear it from someone other than Glimmer or Angella, since they were less affected by the power of the moon than the ordinary werewolf. The two leaders had a blood tie with the Moonstone that would make them more powerful, as well as retain their mind better even at the height of the full moon. Not fully, but better than the average. 

At that moment, the Alpha of the pack herself joined her pack on the lawn outside the castle at last. Her stride was as brisk as her demeanor, betraying her usual cool calmness to show that she too felt the energy in the air. 

“Oh, hey mom!” Glimmer waved over, releasing her grip on Adora. It was both a loss to Adora for the contact she craved, and a relief on her back. “Any advice for Adora’s first moon run?”

“Ah, Adora.” She said fondly. “There’s no need to worry. Even if anything did happen, you would have the strength of the pack around you.” 

“Okay, but, um.” Adora shifted uneasily and rubbed her arm. “That sounds, uh. Really vague? Do you have anything more concrete?”

Angella puzzled for a moment, putting a hand to her chin in thought. Then she settled on it and placed a hand on Adora’s shoulder. 

“The first time that you use the restroom after you have transformed back? Don’t look.” She advised with a smile. She then turned to address the rest of her pack in the dwindling time before the moon rose. Adora was just even more confused.

“ _ What _ ,”

“Hey, you asked for something more concrete!” Glimmer laughed, patting Adora’s back much stronger than she intended as she laughed. 

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Whenever Catra got worked up, she acted out. That was always the case when they were growing up together. Adora would bottle things up and Catra would do the opposite and lash out. She had been warned of her weakness for letting her emotions get the better of her, for wearing her heart on her sleeve. Shadow Weaver had tried to teach her a few permanent lessons about the consequences of her actions. And in theory, it was easy to admit to herself that she got out of control and it wouldn’t happen again.

But then something would happen. And she didn’t know what else to do. It boiled in her gut and she resorted right back to throwing hands at anybody that so much as looked at her. The only exception was Adora. Of course even then, they still got in a few scuffles. 

But now? Now she really had to be careful when she threw her weight around. Now, she was an apex predator. She still didn’t know the limits of her own strength. And she couldn’t risk getting Scorpia or the others hurt. After all, she relied on three of them for blood. 

Or maybe, deep down, she just didn’t want to be the monster she thought she was. 

Regardless, she carved a wide path for herself through the woods, pushing aside rocks and tree branches like they were nothing without a second thought. Did it make her remarkably easy to follow? Yes. Did she care? She just didn’t think about it is all. She was too busy thinking about Adora.

She never should have let Adora go out to find the village alone. Then maybe they could have stood a chance against those stupid hounds. 

It was supposed to be different. They had it planned out since they were old enough to want anything. Adora would make the turn and Catra would be her favorite blood bank until Adora could use her influence to convince the other superiors to turn Catra as well. Then with both of them unstoppable, they could have ruled over the Crimson Horde and lay waste to the Rebellion Wolf Pack. They wouldn’t have to worry about Shadow Weaver hurting them any more. They wouldn’t have to worry about having enough time to do anything since they could live forever. They could finally be together. 

Nope. No. Not anymore. Catra had to shake her head and growl to herself to dissipate the fantasy forming in her imagination. She grumpily kicked a pebble and possibly put it into orbit. 

Of course she had always wanted Adora. How couldn’t she?

But the night at the village made it clear to her. Adora didn’t feel the same way. She had other priorities, like helping innocent people. And Catra should have hated that she put some strangers over her best friend. But honestly, it was so Adora, that it made her love her all the more. 

Not that it would ever come to light. They were enemies now. And Catra would need some time alone away from that blabbering Scorpia and her big mouth ("Vampire--more like CAMPire am I right Catra! Get it, cause we're camping!") in order to come up with a whole new life plan from scratch. 

By now, she was getting closer to the heart of the territory. The castle couldn’t be far off. If she was spotted, she’d have a tough fight on her hands. But she didn’t care. She was eager to test those new limits of her strength and speed. 

As though to remind her of her task, a wolf’s song broke out over the treeline. It was loud with pride and full of energy as it sang out around her. It wasn’t long before it was joined by another voice, then another. There were at least a dozen, fading in and out so smoothly that Catra lost count. She was closer than she thought. And they sounded closer to her than she had realized.

Maybe she would have more trouble than she anticipated if she were outnumbered. 

She backed up half a step, unsure of her plan all of a sudden. The song continued, echoing in the night air as the full moon rose over the horizon, glowing white over the dark forest. 

If she had a functioning circulatory system, her heart would be pounding in fear right now. But the absence of such a simple experience reminded her of her near invincibility. She would not be torn to shreds like some mortal. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t in any danger.

This no longer presented her with the tactical advantage. And to be honest, it was never about tactics, but just getting away from her stupid camp. And now she was in the heart of the werewolf territory, in the belly of the beast, desperately outnumbered and still not fully in control of her new powers. 

She might as well have had a neon sign on her that read ‘free meal.’ 

But no, they didn’t know of her presence yet. She had to hide. Hide now, live to fight another day. 

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Running with the pack felt like what she was born to do. All the broken pieces of her life became a semblance of purpose and pride around her. 

Her mind was not trapped by her instincts, but rather freed from it. 

Her brain, usually so cluttered and scattered with her own anxiety, was wiped clean of all the inane things that she worried about. There was only room to worry about  _ pack _ and  _ run.  _ If she thought about anything else she wouldn’t be able to keep up, wouldn’t be able to survive. And where empty space was created for her to concentrate, the senses of the world filled in around her. She could smell and see and hear everything in the sharpest detail she had never even known existed. 

She reveled in freedom, she was the master of her own destiny here. She was liberated by the moon, and was finally able to truly experience the earth in the way that it was always meant to be. The grains of dirt in her toes, the moisture clinging to her golden fur, the taste of wind as she charged headfirst into it. 

Despite being able to walk or run on two legs in this, their most powerful form, she as well as the rest of the pack still dropped to fours when it came to desire for break neck speed. 

Her paws flew under her, barely feeling the debris of the forest floor for a moment before launching her off again, all at a pace that was faster than her heart had ever raced. No, here there was calm excitement. Passion and commotion, but at the same time all reassuringly  _ right _ , like pieces of an engine coming together to form the roar of a machine.

She could smell and see and hear her pack in every direction around her, as they all ran as one. Looming shadows at least twenty feet apart in each direction as she, like them, wove around trees and jumped gulleys. She knew that the Alpha was at the head of the pack, leading them around their territory in search of threats or meals. 

_ Run.  _ Her mind was focused on the singular action. It was simple, a desire made into swift action. The words were not her own, as she hardly thought in words coherently as much as smells and sights and sounds. This is what they meant, when they warned her about losing her mind. It was just simple thoughts. 

_ Run. Follow the Alpha.  _

It was as exhilarating as it was natural. Adora loved it. 

_ Follow the pack.  _

Adora leapt a gap over a stream. The smells were so different from one area to the next. 

_ Geese. _ She realized.  _ West. Food, that way. _

_ Waterfall. Need to run around.  _ She course corrected based on what she heard ahead, weaving her way around along with every other member of the large wolf pack. 

_ Home. Home? Home! _

Her pace stopped abruptly. Thanks to her weeks of training with Glimmer, she was able to slide to a halt instead of falling on her face. The leaves around her swirled in the brief gust of a breeze she brought with her from the run. She then stood to her full height on her hind legs while she smelled again. 

That smell. 

It was familiar. 

_ Safe. Home. Smell familiar. Remember smell. Smell from childhood. _

She let the pack keep running. They didn’t notice that she wasn’t with them. Their howls grew more distant but Adora looked around her, trying to find the source of the thing that brought her comfort. Her nose worked the air, trying to milk out every drop of the fragrance. Her ears turned like radars. 

_ Smell from always. Smell from sleep. Smell from home. _

It was as simple as that, in her mind. It meant a home in her mind but not in a place. She didn’t imagine a certain setting for the smell, she just knew that it was a missing piece from her life. 

The simple sensation of experiencing it brought a sense of comfort across her fur that she had not known in a long time. 

_ Home. Safe.  _ She thought. Her wolf brain was in control now, and it was all she was capable of thinking. Had she had more of her mental capacities, she might have stopped to think about the actions she was taking, why it was so familiar to her. But that was the farthest thing from her mind at the moment. She was all canine senses and no room for human thought or worry. 

She found the scent again on the air, and inhaled it reverently. 

_ Go home. _ She thought simply. But if she were her human brained self, she would have recognized that as accepting as the pack was to her, as safe as she felt within the castle walls, it was still missing that nostalgic value of familiarity that she had known in the Crimson Horde. It would always be foreign and new and so different than what she was used to. And having a swift waft of something that was innately familiar to her, how could she not go looking for it? How could she not want to be a part of something that, for one small moment, made her feel like she wasn’t in some alien environment and made her remember that even if things changed, not everything did. 

The smell was of copper pipes grown dusty with cobwebs. It was like the mineral rich tap water from the pubic showers and the smell of the worn down old white tile. It was the smell of sweat in the blanket after a long day of training, and hiding in the beds to treat the cuts and scrapes with gentle touches. It was the smell of her home, not in a place but in a person that she had known better than her home base. 

_ Find? Find and feel safe? Safe for comfort. _ She thought as she set out. There wasn’t an ounce of hesitation in her heart, pounding in her chest both from the run and the joy at finding the familiar smell. 

She needed to find it because then she might know the comfort that she once did. It smelled like home, and she would always return home, no matter where it led her. Her canine instincts knew that no matter what it would be safe near that smell. 

She worked her nose across the ground. Back on all fours, she found her way to a trail that the smell had come from, a trail that led to the source of the smell through the woods. It was sour and strong, still fresh. She wagged her tail happily and followed the trail through the brush, happily slowing down from her run with the pack and taking the time to feel the soil between her toes as she carefully traced it. 

She felt the happiness and comfort coming from it. She knew that this smell was only ever good, never bad. No reason to believe that it would ever cause her any harm or heartbreak, but only warmth and relief. Her ears pointed forwards eagerly, and she tracked down her target. 

She kept her head low to the ground, smelling the tracks left behind by the smell. Her pack was long gone, running the opposite direction as she slowly walked closer to the mountain bluffs in the woods. Her mind was singular, focusing only on the task rather than the implications. The past and the future were both unimportant to her, only the present. And the present was her goal, to get to home smell in order to feel happy. 

Her trail was erratic, but she didn’t have the capacity to realize that perhaps this trail was made by a person unfamiliar with the woods. It brought her to the base of a stony gray cliff of granite, covered in roots hanging down from the top and vines crawling their way up from the bottom. It matched the pale light of the moon nicely, making a harsh contrast of gnarled shadows on its surface. 

Before her was a fissure. It was a huge vertical split in the rocks, reaching almost all the way to the top at eighty meters. At the base it was the widest, probably six feet wide. And at that entrance into the chasm, was where the smell was still coming from. The end of her trail. Adora lifted her head and wagged her tail. She did not hesitate to consider the danger of walking alone into a dark cave with a mysterious smell. Adora just wanted the peace of mind that her canine instincts allowed her as she confidently trotted up to her fate. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Catra really should have attended her New Vampire Orientation. 

She was hearing and seeing and smelling a lot of things, none of which were important of course. Perhaps if she had attended her orientation, she might have learned how to tune out the filler sounds and just get the details she needed. Or maybe learn what a werewolf smells like up close, or how to fight them. Or perhaps learn how to properly get the lay of the land so she wouldn’t get stuck in the heart of werewolf territory. 

She had found a wide cave to hide in, for now. She still anxiously wondered if this was a good call. Would they find her here? If they did, she would be trapped with no way out against a wall of teeth. But should she risk being out in the open again? It might make her more prone, they could come at her from anywhere if she wasn’t hiding. She wondered if any of these sorts of tactical problems were covered in New Vampire Orientation and if maybe Scorpia was right about delaying their stupid camping trip by actually looking out for her all along. 

If she had gone, she would have learned about keeping more careful track of the moon cycle. How to control her deep hunger for blood. How to make sense of all her new senses. 

Stay or go. Stay or go. Live or die. But which was which?

She was pacing the sandy floor of the cave anxiously. She could see perfectly well here in the darkness, and hoped it would provide her with stable enough cover. Should she just put her limits to the test and make a supernaturally fast mad dash back to the camp?

She turned on her heel, now facing the entrance to her cave. She took a step and a half before she froze in her tracks.

That sound, there was no mistaking it: there was something big making its way closer to her. 

_ Shit. _

She didn’t move a millimeter, held her breath as she heard four heavy paws tread the ferns and undergrowth getting closer.

This was it. She was dead. No doubt it was a werewolf that had found her hiding spot. If her heart was still working, it would be pounding loud enough to echo on the cave walls. She was going to die before she ever got to face Adora again, before she could say what she wanted to say. Fear gripped her cold and hard in the ribs, hot regret washing over her to replace it.

A dark shadow appeared outside, still too far away to make out. That’s when she smelled the sweaty fur. 

Definitely a werewolf.

But also... a familiar musk underneath it all. The sweat on her coat smelled like half of it was animal but the other half was... Adora? They trained together enough, she knew it by heart, but it was still hard to make out the underlying tones. 

Her eyes widened with the realization. 

This was Adora. 

She had been changed. She was a werewolf now. 

And Adora had found her.

For some reason, that made her imaginary heart beat even harder. 

If her nerves were fried before at her odds, they were an out of control forest fire by now.

Did Adora hate her? Would she kill her?

No matter how the odds changed, it always seemed to be stacked against Catra in her own mind. She didn’t want to die, she didn’t want Adora to have to be the one to kill her. 

All this ran through her mind in the second that it took for the lumbering frame of Adora to wander up to the entrance of the cave. 

She looked so much like Adora, but also so much that wasn’t Adora that was just wild animal. 

Golden fur, even brighter and richer than Adora’s own hair, covered her enormous body. Tattered gray trousers kept her decent, but still allowed a hole for the tail. She stood on two legs, just shy of being twice Catra’s height, but Catra could tell that going on all fours would have also been a reasonable option for speed, given how top-heavy she looked. Her shoulders were wide enough to reach both ends of the long narrow cave, and her arms were heavy enough with muscle that Catra doubted her new abilities would last long against that kind of raw animal power. 

Her eyes. They were blue. Before they had been a bluish-gray, but this seemed an enhanced version of every aspect of Adora, and Catra gasped when they landed on her, flinching backwards slightly. At that, Adora looked concerned, hesitant, and her ears pulled backwards. She inched forward into the cave, and Catra visibly tensed up, unsure of what to expect. A fight? But no, she just sat back on her haunches like a dog and lowered her head slightly, appearing smaller, her eyes pleading. 

“Adora?”

Catra wondered if werewolves could smell fear, if Adora was holding back so much was a sign that she wanted to say  _ don’t be scared _ . It was like the act of Catra in distress was enough to distress Adora, enough to confuse her. Typical idiot Adora, not seeing what could possibly scare her about facing a giant hairy monster while cornered in a cave. 

“Are you alone?” Catra asked, trying to sound brave but just sounding like a younger version of herself again. Wanting to trust and not wanting to be vulnerable by trusting. But all Adora did was cock her head to the side, her ears going uneven in confusion. 

Her face was still concerned. Despite all her wolf features, her new bones, her fur, she still had such a human like expression on her face it would be impossible to misread. 

“Can you understand me right now? Can you talk?”

A howl sounded in the night, far away over the Northern ridge, and Adora ignored it. She made no indication of her understanding, only whined slightly, a high pitched sad whistling sound from her new body. 

Catra finally allowed herself to relax enough to inch closer. They were within arms reach now. Adora lifted her head a bit more, leaning forward eagerly. Like this, they were almost eye level. 

Her fur looked even softer and golder up close. So different from her straw-like blonde hair. Then she noticed the little poof between her ears, the same as the way she styled it as a human, and she choked down a smile, not wanting to let her guard down. But it was just so classic Adora, wasn’t it? Maybe she was still in there, in some form. Her eyes held some semblance of recognition, but also an obvious sense of confusion. She didn’t know what was happening. Did she recognize Catra?

Would she hate her if she did? If she could remember, would she attack? Would she have even come here at all?

Or was that why she had come here?

Catra reached out a hand to Adora’s cheek. As soon as she realized, Adora started wagging her tail, but otherwise stood still and allowed the casual touch to pass between them.

“You don’t even know who I am right now, do you?” She said much softer. The other hand joined in Adora’s fur, looking down into her eyes and trying to read her mind through them. Adora whined again, softer than before, sorrowfully. 

When Adora moved again, Catra didn’t flinch away. Adora straightened her back and reached out her big arms, almost as big as Carta herself, and the next thing Catra knew she was sucked into a never ending embrace of downy fur and soft smells, wrapped up in Adora’s desperate hug. She tensed, wondering if this was a hostile maneuver, but no crushing force came. She knew it wouldn’t, but she wouldn’t have blamed Adora if she did. No, it was a hug that was filled with the warmth of the midday sunbeams, pressing reassuringly in every direction, holding her together while she felt like she was falling apart. 

Adora nuzzled her nose into Catra’s long hair, squeezed her eyes shut while Catra’s eyes were wide with shock still. 

She should have pushed away. She should have stepped back. She should have taken the opportunity to strike down her foe while she was so distracted and vulnerable. 

But she didn’t. She couldn’t. She had missed Adora more than she realized. Being in her presence was enough to remind her of every reason that she wanted to find Adora. Not for revenge, but to be close to someone. 

She wanted this closeness, wanted it like she wanted air to breath, if she were still living. Now, in place of the need to breathe, there was only room for wanting to feel the strong heartbeat under the mound of fur snuggling into her, to feel safe far away from Shadow Weaver or the horde or the pack or anything else that threatened them. 

Against all her rationality, she followed her instincts and leaned into the touch, her arms wrapping around Adora’s much larger frame. She buried her face in Adora’s shoulder and let herself feel safe for the first time in so long. Adora sighed as though she were tired after a long day of work, and held on tight to her oldest friend. This was home. This was safe. 

An embrace to undo all the pain. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora woke up feeling good. A sort of calm warmth spread through her limbs that could have only possibly been brought by some excellent relief of news, perhaps a much needed break. She hadn’t felt this relaxed in weeks, maybe years. After all, the horde rarely allowed the training cadets the opportunity to relax. The stony, sand covered earth was beneath her, and instead of being a discomfort, it reminded her of the old barracks, snuggling with Catra when they were younger. It made her want to snuggle into the cool relief of the earth further, closer to the smell. 

But eventually, she did have to wake up. The realization came when she realized that she was on a cave floor instead of her bed in Bright Moon. She had no idea how she had gotten here. The last thing she remembered was an electric energy coursing through her blood just before she transformed just outside of Bright Moon castle. 

Adora sat up and looked around with worry. Where the hell was she? It was already midday. Her clothes were dirty and disheveled. The sun was bright and warm outside the cave entrance. It didn’t seem as though she was harmed. Where was the pack? 

The scent of Catra again came to her senses. This time, Adora recognized it immediately now that she was able to think more coherently. She got to her feet and spun around in the direction of the scent.

“Catra?” She wasn’t alone. Catra was here in the cave, curled up against the farthest wall from the entrance almost completely covered by darkness. She made no sound, until she was noticed and she growled angrily at Adora. 

For all their weeks apart, Adora had feared that Catra was dead. Anxiety had made itself comfortable living in her heart in the place where Catra once lived, and she was filled with relief and joy that she was here. 

“You’re alive!” She yelled, coming over to her friend, but Catra stood up and took a defensive stance as though she was prepared to fight Adora, stopping her in her tracks. 

“Like you care!” She spat. Adora’s heart stammered a moment, hurt and confused. 

“Well what-- what are you doing here? How did we get here?” She asked, automatically taking up a defensive while she felt under attack by her oldest friend. Catra scoffed and rolled her eyes. 

“Tch. Typical brainless mutt. You don’t remember anything from the full moon do you?” It was meant to be rhetorical to tease Adora, but she naturally took it seriously and shook her head in response, causing another eye roll from Catra. 

“You trapped me by falling asleep on top of me, you brute!” Catra snapped bitterly, raising her voice. “And now I’m stuck here!” 

Adora was about to ask why she was stuck here, if she didn’t want to be here so badly she could just leave-- even if Adora didn’t want her to leave. But that was when she noticed that something was different. 

Her scent. It was still Catra, but it smelled more like the Crimson Horde than she remembered, more like their superiors. And she didn’t have a heartbeat. And if she couldn’t go outside in the sunlight...

“You made the change?” Adora asked almost incredulously. 

“Well it looks like I’m not the only one.” Catra replied, gesturing to Adora. “Took you what, ten seconds? To find something good enough to completely abandon your home, your career, everything? Was it worth it?”

“Catra it’s not that simple!” Now Adora’s temper was rising. She was expecting a more happy reunion with her oldest friend, but clearly Catra didn’t see it that way. Instead she wanted to bring all her life choices under scrutiny. “Shadow Weaver was lying to us; you don’t understand, the vampires are--”

“Evil?” Catra cut her off, stalking towards Adora. She took a few steps backwards closer to the cave entrance. “Is that what those stupid tails told you? That all vampires are just uncontrollable blood suckers? Does that make me evil now by default, _Adora?_ ”

“That’s not what I meant!” Adora sputtered, standing her ground. 

“Like it makes any difference!” Catra argued, crossing her arms. “I thought this was what we both wanted, but the same second you got the opportunity to leave me behind in the dust, you took off! Did you even care what they did to me?” Her voice cracked, revealing the hurt girl underneath the bristling angry facade. “Did you even think about what would happen? I failed Shadow Weaver.”

Adora softened slightly, seeing the holes in her mask that allowed her to understand why Catra was so angry. 

Was this ever even her choice? Or did Shadow Weaver force it upon her?

Was this punishment for her failure to retrieve Adora? 

Or was Shadow Weaver hurting Catra just to punish Adora?

“Catra, it’s not like that!” She tried to argue weakly. “Of course I was worried about what was going to happen to you! But I couldn’t go back, not after what I saw. You could have come with me!”

“Oh, because I always need to follow you around, right?” Catra replied bitterly. Her anger was returning, leaving her momentary weakness behind. 

“That’s not what I meant!” Adora said again. 

“It doesn’t matter, because you didn’t think!” Catra replied. “You always have to go charging around to be the hero. That’s all that matters to you, isn’t it? Did I mean anything to you? What did you think Shadow Weaver would do to me after I cost her her star pupil?”

“Then why didn’t you leave with me?” Adora’s anger continued to rise, her voice echoing in the cavern walls. 

“Are you stupid?” Catra yelled, balling her hands into fists. “Why would I leave just as they promoted me and gave me everything they were  _ going _ to give you, just to go follow the person who abandoned me? So I can keep picking up your sloppy seconds?”

“Did you even want that?” Adora challenged. “You always said you didn’t care about that.”

“Well I was lying, obviously!” Catra snapped, her voice booming in the chasm walls. “If I had known that without you I could be on top, then I would have done away with you years ago!” 

Adora felt wounded, tears springing to her eyes.

“You were only holding me back.” Catra continued, just as loud and angry. “Why else would you keep me around so long, huh? After all, every hero needs a  _ sidekick _ ,”

“I never meant to make you feel that way!” Adora defended. The tears in her eyes were threatening to fall, and she fought back hoping to not seem weak. All she wanted was her best friend back. She had to make this right. But if she did, she would fall right into Catra’s trap and become the hero again. No matter what, she couldn’t win. “I didn’t want to make you feel like you were second best. It was because Shadow Weaver had us competing for scraps of her approval.”

“Face it Adora: you loved being her favorite! And now you’re just jealous that I took your place when you abandoned the Horde!”

“That’s not true!” Adora yelled. She growled in frustration, sounding far more canine in her throat than she had intended, as the beast inside her was seething in hot rage. The bright anger within only tempted her transformation, but she pulled back on the reign. She was not going to burn up in the fire of this, she  _ was  _ the fire. She was the sun. 

But no matter what she said, Catra was still never going to see what she meant. She would always find some other flaw to pull out and beat her with. It was like she was trying to push her buttons, egging on a fight. Is that what she wanted, to fight? All her words made it clear that peace was not an option. 

Her teeth ached in her gums, wanting to grow out and attack. Adora bit her tongue to hold back her transformation as she faced Catra again, more angry than she had any right to be. 

“Why is everything my fault?” Adora challenged, and Catra could see the difference in Adora’s temper. “It doesn’t matter if I stayed or left, you still would have hated me!” 

“Because everything else is always about you, so you get to take the blame too!” Catra yelled. “Let’s face it, it’s not like you left the horde for me! You left as soon as you found someone else!”

Adora felt her nails harden and become blunt talons embedded in her fingertips. She growled again, and this time lunged for Catra. But she was too slow, and the vampire ducked out of the way with a swift  _ swish  _ sound only to reappear behind Adora in time to make a jab at her ribs. 

Ah, so it _was_ a fight she wanted. 

Adora still held back her transformation. She couldn’t risk losing control, not here. 

She maintained her human form, and felt pain blind her from the left side. She stumbled and almost tripped on the rocky ground, one hand on her eye. Catra stopped, looking down at Adora full of vehemence, without a trace of concern on her face. 

“Was it worth it, Adora?” Catra yelled. “Was leaving me so easy to you?”

“Was turning against me that easy for you?” Adora yelled back, getting ready to attack again. This time she was able to corner Catra against the wall of sunlight outside their cave, so she had little room to move. She tackled the vampire into the dirt, forcing her face down as Adora pressed her limbs from behind her. “Or was it easy because you’ve secretly hated me this entire time? Did our friendship seriously mean nothing to you?”

Catra struggled and squirmed for only a minute, giving Adora the illusion that her strength was being tested. With her guard down, she unleashed her supernatural abilities by pushing herself up from the ground strong and fast enough that Adora went flying backwards until she collided back-first into the wall. 

“What does it matter if you turned tails anyway? You’re the betrayer here!” Catra yelled, righting herself as Adora grunted in pain and tried to stand. “Didn’t you think that by siding with  _ them _ that you would be fighting against your old friends? You only family? This was the only inevitable thing to come from your betrayal!”

Catra seized Adora by the shoulders, forcing her against the rock wall with almost all of her strength, getting ready for another round. But while Catra was faster and smarter, Adora won out in brute strength. She grabbed Catra’s arms and displayed her own abilities by quickly reversing their positions, Catra colliding into the rocks with a crash that rattled the cave’s foundations. But Catra, with all her new abilities and strengths, remained unharmed and only hissed at Adora as she was held fast. 

“You think I didn’t care about leaving?” Adora seethed. Her hair was coming loose and falling across her face from the fight. A month ago, Catra would have thought it made her beautiful. But now, she could only fight. 

“You think I wasn’t worried about what would happen to you?” Adora yelled, lifting Catra up off the ground by her shirt. “I thought you were dead! I mourned! And now it just seems that  _ you wish I was _ !” 

She turned on her heel and threw Catra to the opposite wall of the cave. Catra’s reflexes were quick, and she caught herself with her hands behind her to brace the impact. Her claws dug into the stone like it was clay. She grit her teeth as her ears honed in on Adora’s rapid heartbeat. Her instincts told her to go for the throat, she was already so hungry. It had been days since she had eaten, and Adora was asking for it by starting a fight. But she restrained herself and focused on the fight. She couldn’t escape, and she couldn’t keep this up until nightfall without a drop to drink. 

Adora was stalking towards her, preparing for another bout of exchanged blows. But Catra had been raised and trained with Adora for so long, that she knew all her moves, all her tells. Adora stepped forward with her left leg, turning her hips back; which meant she was preparing for a right swing. Being a werewolf might have made her stronger, but it slowed her down. Catra caught the blow with her wrist, holding Adora over her mid swing. In the same heartbeat, she grabbed Adora’s arm and twisted it till she Adora flipped onto her back in the dust. She coughed as the sandy bottom of the cave sent up a cloud with the impact, then shocked Catra by swinging her legs to knock Catra to the ground as well. Just like pretending to be captured before, it was all a ruse to lower her guard. 

Adora was quick to seize Catra’s collar again, and Catra did the same as they tumbled over the rocks, each one trying to gain the upper hand but unable to. 

“You think I wanted you dead?” Catra spat. How could Adora be so dumb? She couldn’t keep this up much longer. Adora finally lay on top of her, pinning her down with a malicious glint in her eye. She held fast to Catra’s shirt, straddled her hip with her knees on either side of the ground, and Catra released Adora’s shirt and fell prone underneath her, a clear signal that she couldn’t keep fighting for much longer like this. Adora instantly recognized it and changed her demeanor, as though recognizing that she had allowed herself to get carried away and unsure of what to do next. She still held on and leaned in dangerously, such that Catra could feel the warmth of her breath, but the murderous look in her expression was gone. 

“If things got so much better for you without me there,” Adora panted much quieter than her yelling before, out of breath. “Then why would you care if I live or die?” She had a scrape across her cheekbone from their tussle, not enough to bleed but Catra could still smell it on her deliciously. But she bit her tongue. 

“You’re such an idiot.” Catra sighed, letting her head fall backwards onto the floor. 

“Why would you care if I left, then?” Adora continued, pressing on, totally ignorant of what Catra had said. Her voice was soft again, even as she tried to catch her breath she wasn’t yelling anymore. 

Catra lifted her head again and grabbed Adora by the wrists that were holding her slightly off the ground by her upper body. She was too tired for this, and Adora was certainly too thick headed for this. 

“It’s because I love you,” She explained. “I loved you, and you left me.” 

Adora’s face went slack as her eyes widened in shock, she took in a gasp of air as her hands suddenly went limp and dropped Catra’s body to the ground with a soft thud, accompanied by a softer  _ oof _ from Catra. 

She closed her eyes so she wouldn’t have to see Adora’s face. She couldn’t stand to get rejected, not after everything that had happened to them. She brought her hands up to her face now that she was free from Adora’s grasp and tried to cover her eyes, growing wet with tears, and pretending that it was to wipe all the dirt from her face. 

She had no idea that Adora was having the shock of a lifetime if she could not see her. Adora remained frozen in place, the gears in her mind working overtime till she was sure smoke would come out her ears. Her face felt hot when the realization finally hit her, and she didn’t take any time to digest its meaning. 

She looked down at Catra, who seemed to be hiding, and her eyes remained big and curious and hopeful as she gently took Catra’s hands and took them down from her face. Catra looked back up at her with sadness, as though expecting more pain, and that made Adora’s own eyebrows go up in gentle concern. 

“You love me?”

Catra sighed and looked off to the side shyly. 

“You’re such an idiot.”

“I love you too...”

Catra’s eyes snapped back up in shock at Adora’s earnest smile. If it weren’t for her vampirism, her heart would have been racing, and her face would have turned bright red. 

How was that possible? All these years...

“ _ I’m _ such an idiot....” Catra realized. How had she not realized?

Adora looked down at her, her fallen hair poof coming down around her face like a curtain. She smiled, biting her lip nervously. Was this real? For the first time since she transformed, Catra finally felt like a living person again, could feel the butterflies in her stomach and the anxious itch in her skin. 

They both leaned in at the same time, closing the small remaining distance between them and sealing it with a kiss. Their lips met softly, but the impact sent them both reeling like none of the other blows they had exchanged had. It was quick, chaste, hesitant. Their lips moved together briefly before they fell apart. Catra opened her eyes to see Adora, face red as a tomato, inches away from her. 

How was it possible that Adora was this cute? She had seen so many sides of her over the years. She had seen her develop from a tiny child into an awkward teen into an amazing woman. She had seen Adora broken and crumpled under the weight of the pressures Shadow Weaver had given her. She had seen Adora confidently challenge every single doomed training she had been given, to always believe that she could win if she just tried harder. She had seen her turn into a giant hairy beast as her sworn enemy on the battlefield, only to snuggle up to her for the night, protecting her from her own pack. But she had never seen Adora like this. 

Adora didn’t get flustered, she was too confident. Adora wasn’t shy, she was powerful. Adora didn’t get to be this cute and bewildered after everything that Catra knew about her. 

But here they were, both unsure if this was real and waiting for the other to move first. And for some reason, despite all the evidence to the contrary, it was just so undeniably classic  _ Adora _ .

And, Catra found herself initiating a second kiss, snaking one hand up to grab Adora’s neck and the other to hold her hip, still hovering over her own. This time when they met, they seemed to understand what was happening, and both moved together as their lips explored hungrily for more. They were both eager for more contact, ignorant of their own injuries and their setting. The whole world stopped to allow them this tender moment. Catra felt the ghost of her heart flutter in her chest as she could feel Adora’s heart pounding against her ribs. 

They broke apart again, this time breathlessly but still just as tomato red. 

Adora sat up and Catra pushed herself up on her elbows now that she had the room to move, and waited to see what Adora was about to say. 

“Catra I-- I’m so sorry,” She stammered out weakly. “I didn’t think,”

“I know.”

“I never wanted to leave you behind, Catra.”

Catra looked away from Adora’s pleading gray eyes (and was it possible that being a werewolf made them even more blue?) before she answered. 

“I’m the one who left you behind.” It was her greatest shame. 

Suddenly Adora was up and pacing the length of the cave. Catra stood up and dusted herself off. 

“Holy shit.” Adora mumbled, mainly to herself. “Holy shit. This whole time I thought that-- I never thought that I was  _ allowed _ to-- I mean, how long?” She asked Catra. Her spirits dropped, hearing the effect that Shadow Weaver had on her, on both of them growing up. Thinking that she wasn’t allowed just because it was what she wanted. 

“Always have.” Catra answered. “I just always thought that... that you didn’t...”

Adora put one hand on Catra’s shoulder, and the other on her cheek. Catra could feel the warmth of her skin, perhaps another perk since her transformation, seeping from her hand into her own stone cold body. She leaned into it like it was a lifesaver. 

“I didn’t know.” Adora tried to comfort her, but her nerves were fraught. Between finding out Catra was alive, fighting, and that kiss, she was at her wits end for the day. It was all so overwhelming but she didn’t want whatever this was to stop. “I didn’t even know that  _ I _ felt this way, not until it was too late. I was stupid.”

Catra put her own hand over Adora’s that rested on her face. 

“You  _ can _ be pretty dumb.” She teased with a smile. Then she rolled her eyes. “Well, so can I, I guess. I just always thought that you didn’t want me in the same way that I wanted you.” 

Adora took both of Catra’s hands in each of hers, and held them between the two of them. 

“What are we supposed to do now?” Catra realized sadly. 

“I know one thing.” Adora said resolutely. “I’m never leaving you behind again. Wherever you go, I go.”

“Adora you can’t.” Catra insisted, squeezing Adora’s hands. “Between Shadow Weaver and Hordak and everyone else; they’ll  _ kill _ you. We can’t go back to the Crimson Horde.”

“Okay, so we’ll both defect.” Adora thought out loud. 

“I can’t go to Bright Moon, I’m a vampire now. They’ll kill me.” Catra pointed out. “There’s no way that they would let me anywhere near you.”

“They’re not like the Horde, Catra, they're different. They let me in when they didn’t even know a single thing about me other than that I was from the Horde.”

“But you were a mortal, they were able to change you over to their side. Me? I’m their sworn enemy.”

“No, you aren’t.” Adora said firmly. “You’ve never done anything against the pack. They won’t hurt you.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I won’t let them.”

But Catra shook her head, with a light smile. There was the Adora that she knew and loved. So confident and sure. 

“You know, I like to think that I can handle myself. I don’t need you to save me all the time.” She teased. Adora raised an eyebrow with her own challenging smile. 

“What, so you get a new set of chompers and suddenly you can take on the entire Bright Moon pack?”

“Weeeellll, maybe all but one.” Catra stepped closer to Adora and wrapped her arms around her thick, muscular torso. She always knew Adora was ripped, but the werewolf genes had only improved her existing appeal, so to speak. 

“Fine, then that’ll be the one  _ I _ get.” Adora said as she wrapped her arms around Catra’s shoulders. Her body felt cold, and it was strange that there was no heartbeat, but she loved the person inside for all the time she had known her. 

“Adora, no,” Catra laughed

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Glimmer prowled the forest in a rush, not caring for any smell that wasn’t Adora’s. Dusk had set over Bright Moon and she had been searching the massive pack territory all day long. And she would continue to search until she found their missing member. 

It was still close to the full moon, allowing her the energy to shift into her most powerful form. She charged through the forest bipedal, turning her ears and nose in every direction hoping to find a trace of Adora. The stars were starting to appear in the darkening sky when Bow finally caught up to her. He was on all fours, his larger form, back from scouting the perimeter while she tried to find where Adora had gone missing from the pack. 

“Have you found her trail?” Bow asked. From the look of his posture, he hadn’t found anything good. His tail was low, and his ears pulled back. His paws were thoroughly muddy from his long trip all the way around the massive territory. 

“No!” Glimmer snapped. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to take this out on you.” She quickly corrected, bringing a paw-shaped hand up to rub her tired face. “But don’t you think that if I found anything, I would have let you know so you could stop looking?”

“Right. Sure, of course.”

Usually the day after a full moon was a day of rest and recovery, a day of feasting on the Bright Moon fowl and sleeping until the moon rose again. But she had been out, searching with all the best of her senses ever since they all realized that Adora had gone missing when they all woke in the morning. 

Bow made a light whining sound, shifting his paws uneasily in the soil. 

“Bow, what’s wrong, why are you like that?”

“Like what? I’m not--”

“What did you find on the perimeter?”

Bow bared his teeth as he grimaced uncomfortably, his ears all the way back to his scalp. 

“Well I did find something? But it’s not a great sign.”

“Bow!”

“There’s traces of vampire scent!” He blurted out. “One vampire, probably! They must have snuck into our territory last night while we were all distracted!”

“BOW!”

“I know!”

“Adora is missing  _ and  _ there’s a loose vampire in the middle of our territory, right under our noses? There’s no way that’s a coincidence!” Glimmer’s fluffy tail lashed back and forth, anxious bristles rising in the fur along her spine. “My mom is going to kill me! Worse, Adora is in serious danger! She’s still new, I don’t know if she can--”

She stopped suddenly when they both heard a howl rising through the trees. Their ears were quick to pin down the location, recognizing Adora’s voice. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Catra and Adora listened for the return howl from the woods. They began making their journey inland to the hilltop castle as soon as the sun had set, even though Catra still had her reservations. But, with Adora’s word to not let anything separate them, she followed; just as she wished she had a month ago at the village. 

The answer was made quickly, and Adora was right to assume that the others would be out looking for her and worried. The notes of the howl rang out over the treeline for a long time, longer than Catra thought was possible to sustain one breath. 

“So can you like--”

“Shh,” Adora shushed her quickly, as though she were listening carefully to the sound. She had to pay attention to not only its location, but its meaning. When it finally ended, she turned to Catra, encouraging her to continue with a wave of her hand. 

“Can you like, actually speak wolf? Like you can talk to animals and stuff now?” Catra asked, even though her question was answered in some way by how Adora listened to the howling. Adora smiled and rubbed the back of her neck. Catra admired the way the new clothes really fit her jock butch looks. 

“Well it’s sort of more complicated than that.” Adora tried to explain. “I know that Bow and Glimmer are on their way to us. We can meet them halfway.”

“Did you mention that you were with a vampire or is that just going to be a fun little surprise?”

“Again, it's sort of more complicated than that. ‘Speaking wolf’ isn't like speaking with words, it's more vague.”

“So you haven’t told them.” Catra said nervously. 

“Catra,” Adora took Catra’s hand in her own again. “I know I’ve made a lot of mistakes. Especially recently. But please, trust me that we’ll be okay. I’m ready and willing to fight if I have to. I can’t lose you again.”

Catra took a deep breath to steady herself. She didn’t need to, breathing was another thing of the past for her. But the action was, like many things, something she was still learning that she didn’t need. 

She let Adora lead the way through the winding paths in the woods as the night continued on. Each step brought them closer to Bright Moon and further from the Horde, but Catra’s stomach still wouldn’t settle. It could have been the growing anxiety, or it could have been her hunger for blood. She had only ever fed once, and that was days ago. She was due for another dose, and soon. But she still had time. Time enough to figure out how to handle it before she had to worry about flying off into a blind rage. 

“Bow and Glimmer were the first people I met outside of the Horde.” Adora explained over her shoulder. “They originally tried to take me prisoner... but don’t worry! I’m sure that they’ll like you. Besides, Glimmer is like the second in command to the whole pack. I’m positive that I can convince her to let you stay with us, then we can figure out the rest from there. I mean she's one of the most amazing people I've ever met...” Adora looked away to conceal her blush thinking about the pink pelted wolf. "She's the coolest."

Eventually, they came to a clearing in the forest where young growth trees were sprouting up from the ferns, and Adora stopped. Catra became nervous, and Adora must have sensed it.

“They’re close now. I can smell them.” She explained. “Can you?”

“Huh?”

“I’ve been wondering how good your senses are now that you’ve turned into a vampire. Are they as good as a werewolf? Are they better?”

“How would I know, I’ve never had the senses of a werewolf. I wouldn’t even know what to look for.” 

By now the night sky was within full view, the waning moon overhead. Catra observed the stars for a moment, thinking about how the sky was so much clearer here than it was in the horde. There was no smog cloud to obscure the millions of lights. 

“Stand back a bit.” Adora advised. Catra took a few hesitant steps back.

That’s when she heard the sound of something huge barreling through the woods, getting closer.

“Adora--”

A burst of pink fur exploded from the treeline, and Adora immediately jumped in its path as though it were exactly what she were expecting. She spread her arms over the giant animal and dug her boots into the ground, scraping two lines in the dirt as she slowed down the werewolf to a complete halt. Catra recognized her as one of the werewolves from the village. 

With inexplicably supernatural strength, Adora tackled the beast to the ground, a half-play and half-neutralizing measure. She could hardly wrap her arms all the way around her fluffy neck. A moment later, another large wolf, black and brown, appeared a bit slower from the same place, trotting in on all fours and wagging his tail at the sight of Adora. 

“Adora, where have you been!” The pink one started. “We’ve been looking for you all day and there’s a vampire on the loose and nobody has heard from you and I thought you were  _ hurt _ or  _ dead _ or--”

“Glimmer!” Adora cut her off. She still had her arms wrapped around her neck to prevent her from tackling her back. That’s when she caught sight of Catra, and her ears pulled back. She was about to growl, when Adora tightened her grip. Seeing Adora, so small compared to a large creature like this, being able to immobilize Glimmer with her brute strength made Catra’s face feel warm. 

“Guys, this is Catra.”

“Catra?” Bow asked, alarmed. “ _ The _ Catra?”

“Oh, so you’ve heard of me.” Catra said nervously. Adora must have talked about her to her new friends. “Cool. Super cool.” What kind of things did they already know about her?

“Listen, I’ll explain later.” Adora continued, easing up her grip on Glimmer’s fur. “But for now, Catra is going to come to Bright Moon with us. Okay?”

She finally stepped away from Glimmer and both of the other werewolves hesitantly stepped closer to Catra. She recoiled at the strength of their animal-like scent. 

“But Adora, you never said that Catra was a  _ vampire! _ ” Glimmer complained, as though irritated but not quite angry. Catra pushed the pink nose away from herself.

“It was a recent development.” Catra explained, just as irritated. Adora pushed her way in between Glimmer and Catra. Glimmer stood up on her back legs again and crossed her arms. 

“It doesn’t matter. She’s with me now, and I’m still with you guys, so we’re all together. Now can we  _ please _ just get some sleep and some food before we get any further into it?”

“Fine.” Glimmer agreed. “We’ll discuss it in the morning. For now, lets get back to the castle.”

“Gods I’m exhausted.” Adora agreed. They all started walking off in the direction of their home, and Catra followed their lead. 

Catra could see how the last forty eight hours had drained Adora. Despite all the impressive shows of her own strength, it was time for her to rest. Glimmer and Bow looked about the same, though she couldn’t tell much about them from their wolf body language. 

By the time they came in view of the castle, it was past midnight. She had little mind to be awed at the structure as Adora had when she first arrived, she was too worried about other things. But she allowed Adora to lead her through the castle made of glass on top of a hill, until they reached an area that she was told was Adora’s room. 

Having a whole room just for herself was a preposterous idea. She wasn’t even aware that was something that a person could do. But apparently Adora had a room bigger than the entire barracks that they shared with twelve other peers, all to herself. Except that now, she shared it with Catra. 

It was far from the simple bunk beds she was used to. She smiled when she noticed that it looked like Adora had pulled a blanket or two off the lavish bed and made a sort of sleeping area on the ground. She guessed that Adora had been sleeping on the floor since she started living here, unused to soft things. Classic Adora, making herself uncomfortable in order to feel more comfortable. 

Adora caught her gaze and rubbed her neck nervously again. 

“Um, you can take the bed if you want.” She offered. “It’s way too soft for me, I feel like I’m sinking in it. It’s impossible to relax.”

Catra grabbed one of the pillows on the bed and kneaded it’s material gently with her fingers. 

“If this is how they treat their prisoners here, then... maybe I can make do here.” She smiled. 

"You aren't a prisoner." Adora sealed her promise with a kiss to her cheek. 

She had missed too much time with Adora. She should have followed her away from the Horde ages ago. She should have taken her hand and run away and not stopped until the Horde had disappeared from the horizon. But for now, they were here and now. 

Catra sat on the bed, and as soon as she got settled, she could see and hear the scuffling of Adora changing into something more comfortable and joining her. She pressed Catra’s back against her own chest, one arm wrapped around her side as their legs bent together. And, despite her complaints about being unable to relax, Adora was exhausted enough that she was passed out in minutes. 

Sleep was another thing that she didn’t need anymore. She couldn’t sleep even if she tried. And she had tried, extensively. She missed sleeping, and dreaming. It was always the one comfort she had away from training drills and Shadow Weaver breathing down her neck. It was the one thing that she missed most about being a vampire. 

But here, feeling the steady thud of Adora’s heartbeat against her back, being wrapped up in her arms, she figured this was as close as she could get to sleeping. And it was good enough for her. For the first time since she had changed, she felt alive. And she felt home. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again just to reiterate: updates may be irregular as I go through some trauma with my family but it will still be here. Please comment with your thoughts! I love hearing back from fans so much that it really does encourage me to keep going. Sorry again for being late!


	5. Collisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora and Catra use their Horde intel to successfully save a village from a vampire attack. Catra gets hurt in the process, and Glimmer gets to try a new experience.

Angella was really warming up to Adora in the short time that she had been living with her pack in Bright Moon. Sure she was wary at first-- who wouldn’t be? Not only was this a new person she knew nothing about, but she was from the Crimson Horde! She was raised her whole life to be a vampire loyalist, at worst aspiring to be a walking feedbag for those leeches and at best aspiring to become one herself. 

And maybe it was the maternal instincts talking, but she really couldn’t hold any negative feelings against Adora. She saw how this woman, strong as she was, was a hurt child. And she tried so hard every day, she had to admire that. 

Plus, she wasn’t blind. There was something about the chemistry between Adora and Glimmer. She admitted to herself after a while that she really couldn’t object, they had been nothing but good influences on each other. While Glimmer was constantly testing her patience, Adora only wanted to prove herself worthy of the pack. And what wasn’t noble and wolf like about that?

That was, until today. It seemed as though while Glimmer would test her patience in small amounts almost consistently, she wondered if perhaps Adora was saving up all her rebellion for one big action instead. 

Because today, Adora brought a vampire right into her home. A defiant one too, it seemed. 

“So you brought back a prisoner?” She clarified, standing over them up on the dias where her throne was. 

“No, a friend.” Adora insisted again, still standing between her Alpha and the intruder, not quite protectively but prepared to do so if necessary. Glimmer was also here, trying to understand as well as her mother but seemingly more forgiving somehow. Angella once again chalked it up to that lesbian brain that she always heard her daughter and Bow bickering about. 

“She is the race of our sworn enemy, Adora. The race you pledged yourself to destroy when you joined my pack.” Angella pointed out, eliciting a brief shameful expression to cross Adora’s face. She looked away, some of her bravery evaporating under the scrutiny of someone she looked up to. Adora rubbed the back of her neck and tried to muster up the courage again. 

“I made a promise to Catra to always look out for her, long before I ever left the Horde.” She explained. Now it was Catra’s turn to look downwards shyly, shifting uncomfortably at the memories she wasn’t sure if Adora had remembered. Adora looked back up at her Alpha with her cheeks flushed red, though she probably didn’t realize it. Angella was reminded again of why she liked Adora. This brave soul who wanted to save everyone, wanted to be a hero and was perhaps quietly hurting in ways that Angella did not realize without this Catra. 

She turned her attention to the vampire. She had made no sound so far, not even a heartbeat, but had only sneered at those who looked at her wrong. She looked ready to fight, on edge and tense as a spring. 

“And what of your allegiances, vampire?” She asked, catching the attention of heterochromatic eyes. She scowled again, revealing her elongated fangs. 

“I have a name.” She snapped challengingly instead of answering. Angella was shocked for a brief moment at the blatant boldness she displayed. 

Glimmer cleared her throat, a quick cough where she seemed to spit out the name  _ Catra _ casually between breaths towards her mother. This did not help Angella’s mood. 

“Yes I  _ know _ , I was just--nevermind.” She huffed at her daughter. Catra seemed to smirk at the princess, Adora raised an eyebrow curiously. 

It seemed as though Glimmer knew more about this Catra character than Angella did. It made sense, with how Glimmer and Adora talked so much. But she always thought that Adora didn’t particularly like talking about her past, at least not when Angella was around. 

“You have to understand,  _ Catra _ ,” Angella tried again, emphasizing that she did know the young woman’s name. “Not only do I know nothing about you, but your being a vampire may change what your intentions are here. And I intend to get to the bottom of this.”

Catra seemed to think for a moment. It almost seemed like she was doubting her decision, as though she might change her mind and not take the risk and instead just take off back to the Horde. It was apparent in the way that she scanned all the exits, shifted her weight back and forth between her feet. But then she seemed to think of something else to change her mind, something that made her shake her head.

Catra walked forward, standing between the Alpha and Adora. She wore a similar look of bravery on her face that Adora had earlier. Similar, but not quite the same. 

“I made a promise to Adora too. To look out for her too.” She said evenly. Then her expression softened slightly when she added, “I just forgot about it.” guiltily. 

It was a touching sentiment, but it didn’t calm down Angella’s anxiety about why Catra was here and what her plans were. She glared down at the dark skinned woman before her, not backing down from her interrogation. 

“And what is to stop you from forgetting again?” She challenged. After all, this promise was clearly important enough for her to betray those who gave her her vampirism and change loyalties. What if that same promise made Adora abandon the pack that gave her her lycanthropy? If Catra was so quick to change sides over to the pack, who’s to say she wouldn’t change sides again against them? Even if she abandoned the Horde, that didn’t mean she was on their side if her loyalty was so fickle. 

“It’s a mistake I won’t make twice.” Catra stated. Then she had a slightly shocked expression, and both Catra and Angella realized that Adora had reached out for her hand. The casual touch was necessary for Adora for comfort, but Angella could tell that Catra was still unused to such public display of even the slightest intimacy, mirroring Adora’s reaction from weeks ago. “Just because they made me a vampire doesn’t mean that I owe them anything.” Catra spat, seeming to read Angella’s mind. Clearly her anger this time was more directed at the Horde than it was at Angella. “I’m here for Adora. If you want me gone, then I’ll leave peacefully.” 

“But then I’ll leave too.” Adora added on. 

The difference in their tone struck hard. Catra explained as though she practically expected it. For Adora, it was with the confidence that it would never come to that. 

They were so different, and yet so similar. 

“I can still help your pack. I’ll tell you everything I know--”

“In exchange for blood?” Angella cut her off. 

The elephant in the room was addressed, and Glimmer seemed to become more hesitant than her openness before. She crossed her arms and cocked her head to the side, curious about how the pair would explain their way out of that one. 

They didn’t want to address it because they didn’t have a nice, comfortable, clean solution to that. The truth was that she was a vampire, and she would need to suck blood in order to live. Bright Moon had never exactly hosted a vampire before, they hardly knew what to expect. Glimmer knew that Adora had been used for being fed on by her clan, but she never really talked about it. When Glimmer thought about it, the sensation of her blood moving from her body to another’s in such an unnatural way, her skin crawled and she suppressed a shiver. 

“Look, I’m still new to this whole thing--”

“But you are a vampire, and you will need a host to provide you with blood.” Angella interrupted again. There was a reason she had never hosted a vampire before. “I won’t let you harm my pack.” At this, some of her protective wolf brain flared up, and she showed her large and pointed teeth of her own. While Catra’s were sleek and streamlined, those of the werewolves were bulky, boxy, and wild. But Catra didn’t back down at the vicious display of her threat. 

“I won’t take blood from anyone who isn’t willing. And I can drink without totally draining them.”

Angella was about to say something clever again, but it was her daughter who spoke up. 

“You’re not even giving her a fair chance, mom.”

She turned her attention away from Catra and over to Glimmer, whose arms were still crossed but now she looked up at her mother and Alpha, the Queen of the pack. This defiant lovestruck wolf would be the death of her. But she would also one day be the Alpha in her place, and lead the pack in the future. 

Adora and Glimmer were together on this, she saw that now. For different reasons, and in different ways, they were behind Catra despite all the warning signs that told Angella to lock her up. And if they were together, then there was no point in arguing with two headstrong young werewolves. Perhaps with each other, all three of them, they could make this work. 

But she also wasn’t an idiot. She had to make sure that they all knew that, the three of them. She would never kick out Adora, and even if she already didn’t like Catra she could tell that she needed a home after she gave up everything for Adora. She liked that Catra was ready to risk it all and lose everything for one person she was loyal to. So yes, obviously she was going to let Catra stay. But if she just said that then they would wonder if she was an idiot, and there was still a miniscule chance they could take advantage of that. She merely had to make it  _ look _ like it was a hard decision for her, so that they would respect her authority on it. 

“Very well then.” She relented, forcing her shoulders to relax back. She stepped down from the dias to the trio, eyes on Catra. “I will allow you to stay. But you will not have any blood until I am sure of your worth and loyalty to this pack.”

Adora was, to her credit, adorable. Instantly, her facade of bravado was dropped and she was grinning ear to ear, her eyes practically sparkling with joy. It took every ounce of self control Angella had not to smile back at this for how it tickled her, and instead keep a stern face to mirror Catra’s. Glimmer threw an arm around Catra’s shoulders with a similar victorious expression. 

“Alright, welcome to the pack, Horde scum!” She jibed, breaking Catra out of her trance with Angella. 

“Until I am assured of your intentions, you will be constantly chaperoned, by either Adora or Glimmer.” Angella added on to her conditions. Now Catra’s expression changed as well, and Angella couldn’t say she enjoyed this transformation as much as the other two. She went from bravely challenging to… chaotic smirk. 

“What like, even when I’m in the  _ bathroom? _ ” She said teasingly. 

Ah. So that was the catch. She was going to make herself insufferable. Angella started to regret her decision. 

“Wait wait wait. Do vampires even  _ go _ to the bathroom?” Glimmer asked, suddenly curious. Catra shrugged. 

“Who’s to say, I’m still new at this!” She continued to tease. 

“Hang on, you were  _ raised  _ by a clan of vampires how do you not know this.” Glimmer teased back. Adora struggled to contain her laughter like a leaking balloon  _ ppfffffff _ . The three of them seemed to get along well together already, and this eased Angella’s mind. 

“I didn’t chaperone  _ them _ to the bathroom!” Catra raised her voice and arms, her joke having gotten away from her in the best way. The three of them laughed like they had always known each other. Their teasing was as natural as the full moon. Angella cleared her throat to calm them all, reminding them that she was still there. 

“When you are done,” She smiled. “Tell me everything you know about the Horde.” Catra nodded, and took it as a sign to begin immediately. 

“They hunt on the New Moon, when the werewolves are weakest.” Catra explained.

“Well yeah, but everybody knows that.” Glimmer commented. “You can set our watch to it.”

“It’s true, I’m afraid.” Angella agreed. “We’ve known this for some time.”

Catra, not for the first time and not for the last, wished that she had attended the New Vampire Orientation. But just because she didn’t go to the orientation didn’t mean that she wasn’t clever, she always noticed more things than Adora. She still had information. 

“I can tell you their patterns.” She offered. “If we can make a plan, we can still head them off, even if the pack isn’t full strength. We could decrease the damage by predicting their movements.”

“Go on…”

  
  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


“You’re the Scout, how are you so bad at this. It’s literally like your job.” Glimmer lamented over Bow’s shoulder. He stuck his tongue out in his concentration. 

“I never said I was an artist.” He defended. 

“Ugh, what’s the point.” Glimmer flopped down onto the couch that was adjacent to him. Bow closed the shape he was outlining, dragging his pencil over the parchment with less precision than he had hoped. 

“The point is that we really need to update our records and maps.” Bow said disapprovingly. He was in the process of sketching out a map of the Pack territory across the woods, as requested by Catra so they could all determine the next likely target. All the wolves knew the lay of the land by heart, but Catra and Adora would need the reference of a map. And who better to ask about mapping out the land than their very own Scout. 

Glimmer went to get such a resource from Bow alone. But she did not think it would take this long. If she had known, she would have sent Adora to do this so she could go train. Now, however, she was stuck watching Bow carve out squiggly lines to show rivers and elevation, towns and landmarks. Which meant she was alone with her thoughts, which was absolutely not allowed. 

She moaned miserably, flipping her feet up on the back of the couch while her head hung down. 

“Wait, where did I put my ruler…” Bow muttered, ignorant of her misery. 

Glimmer groaned again in mental anguish. 

“Can you pass me that compass.”

She did so with a heavy sigh of lament. 

A few seconds passed where Bow didn’t say anything. So, Glimmer took it as her sign to once again sigh dramatically, but this time Bow cut her off by focing his pencil down.

“ _ What _ Glimmer!” He finally asked, already regretting it. With her chance finally given to her, she sat upright immediately and leaned forward on her elbows, launching into the rant of why she was so tormented. Although, he didn’t need to ask what was bothering her, he knew exactly what it was. 

“It’s Adora and Catra!” She began. “I have zero chance with Adora now that Catra is here! You  _ saw _ the way that they are together! And then there was how obsessed with Catra Adora always was before she showed up. And I want her to be happy! But like yesterday Catra was assumed to be dead! Ugh, why do I ever get my hopes up in the place when I’m just a rebound for a sexy supernaturally smooth pain in the ass vampire! They have chemistry and history Bow! Chemistry  _ AND _ history! And I feel so dumb for feeling all selfish but man I really thought I would have a shot at something here! But no, I waited too long and I missed the shot and it’s only my fault. But now I have to watch them being all gross and ~soulmate~-ey and they  _ live _ here? And she’s a vampire for crying out loud! At least with Adora she hadn’t been turned yet, but Catra? It’s like--”

“Glimmer!” Bow threw his pencil at her, hitting her square in the face. It shocked her out of her rant enough that she stopped to breathe, as she hadn’t realized she wasn’t inhaling as she let all her frustrations out. Her reddening face quickly returned to its normal shade of toasty pink as her brain caught up with her. Realizing her embarrassment, she straightened up again and cleared her throat, trying to think of how an Alpha should act. 

“Uh, yes Bow?” She said quietly. Bow raised an eyebrow at her, the kind that pierced right through her bullshit every time. Then a sly smirk turned the corners of his mouth up. 

“You think Catra is sexy?”

Glimmer’s brain stopped working. She could feel the smoke in her ears and the red returned to her face. Under her malfunction, she was somehow able to say, in perfectly calm manners:

“Pardon me for  _ one _ moment please.”

She walked smoothly over to the nearest closet, but all the linens in the world wouldn’t have muffled the high pitched scream that shrieked from inside. A moment later found her calmly taking her seat across from Bow again as though nothing had happened. 

“So I take it you still have feelings for Adora?” Bow asked, half focusing on his work, and half smiling at Glimmer kindly. 

“Is that so wrong?”

“Hmmm. Depends on a lot of stuff. And Catra?”

Glimmer clutched a pillow to her face and flopped down on the length of the couch yet again. 

“My gay heart is insatiable.”

“Just play it cool. See what happens. I promise you’ll survive, okay?”

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Glimmer might not survive this. 

The plan was solid, the odds were in their favor, but the new moon left her weak on the frontal assault line. Vampires darted in and out of her visibility everywhere, almost too fast to keep track of. The darkness of the night in the absence of the moon only aided her adversaries, as they glided across the village like a needle and thread through fabric. 

Her paw would swipe at a shadow only a second too late to be met by nothing but air. They were faster than her as it was, the lunar cycle was just adding insult to injury. She felt sluggish. The downside of being more strongly connected to the moon, she might later muse, was feeling the strength of its absence just as much as the power of its presence. 

Of course, she wasn’t alone. Her pack was around her: Adora trying to fight off as many adversaries at once as possible, Bow doing his best just to keep his ground, a few other wolves -- One or two Rooks, a few Hunters for protection -- and then Catra. 

She arrived after the full moon. It was now the new moon, giving them plenty of time to learn about each other. 

Of course, she was glad for the sparring practice against Catra now, as it gave her experience fighting vampires which she could use now. 

Naturally, it was everything else about the vampire girl that drove Glimmer crazy in a good way and a bad way at the same time. 

She was aggravating when it came to her sarcasm and laziness, but so focused and driven that Glimmer found a fondness growing in her heart. Not to mention her drop dead gor--

_ Slice _ !

Talons quickly swiped through Glimmer’s back diagonally, dragging her brain back to the present as well as tearing out her pink fur. Of course, by the time she had turned around, the assailant was gone, quick as the shadows they had vanished into. 

_ Focus! Stupid lesbian brain! _ She growled at her own mistake. She hardly felt any pain in her strongest form, but these scratches were adding up. The vampires were wearing her down, and getting ready to strike her down in their endgame. 

By now all her allies had spread far enough that she, like they all probably were, was isolated from her Pack. No way that wasn’t intentional. 

She could hear screams of panic from the villagers and sounds of struggle in every direction. One large vampire cornered her, just out of her range to attack, waiting for good moments in her shift in focus to run in and strike before ducking back out all before she could blink. Wolves howled in the distance, too far away. 

Glimmer put her weight lower down, balancing on all four paws so she wouldn’t be knocked over. She was the proud princess of the mightiest pack around. She snarled, baring all her teeth, and her fur fluffed out along her spine in a show of aggression. Hopefully it was a second wind and not a bluff. But the vampire snickered, not so easily misled. 

The brief thought that this was all a trap crossed her mind, but she brushed it aside as though she were blowing out a candle. Of course it wasn’t. They had to come here, to protect these innocent people from vampires. Catra wouldn’t lead them straight to an ambush, would she?

Although, it would make sense, with how she came to Bright Moon so easily after--

Glimmer lunged forward, swiping her claws through thin air yet again. These vampires were too fast for her, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t trying. Her eyes scanned the dark, glaring with rage in the dim light of the new moon. But her adversary was already twenty feet away, dancing around her like it was a game, a game that he was winning. 

The vampire widened his steps, running up to her faster and Glimmer braced herself for the inevitable impact of fangs against her flesh.

One second the vampire was charging her, the next thing she knew, he had stopped right before her, a new person coming between them to grapple his raised hands and prevent him from striking. The smell quickly came to Glimmer. 

“Catra?” She gasped incredulously. Catra grunted with the effort of keeping the attacking vampire immobilized, their competing strengths almost evenly matched. The attacker lifted their boot into Catra’s gut and shoved her away, then instantly followed up by striking downwards upon her head, knocking her to the ground. Glimmer winced, the sound it made on impact sounded painful, and Catra faltered, dumbfounded from the injury. She tried to get up but tripped on her own feet, and Glimmer rushed forward to protect her. 

With the vampire distracted by taking down Catra, Glimmer was finally able to get a hold of him, and sunk her claws into his chest as she tackled him to the ground. His face became a shocked and fearful expression, realizing the danger he was in now that he was within her grasp. She bared her teeth fearlessly down at the attacker, feeling his strength struggle against her own. 

But once again, they were interrupted. This time, a sound of tearing fabric and a howl of pain came from beside her. She looked around, and saw Catra, once again defending her from another vampire that had come to the aid of her friend. Catra was clutching her side, recovering from a blow from the vampire woman who had been aiming for Glimmer, trying to free the one she had pinned. Once again, Glimmer’s mind was forced to slow down to take in the scene, and the original assailant took the opportunity to force his way free by slashing his talons through her arm. She withdrew with a pained howl, allowing him to escape. 

Both sides squared up, preparing for battle. Glimmer and Catra versus the two vampires. The two vampires sized up their foes, and shockingly, turned and ran. Glimmer’s posture relaxed, somewhat surprised as they fled back to the surrounding woods. Catra hissed at them, a warning to not come back. 

Glimmer turned around to the rest of the village. Most of the civilians had already fled a while ago in fear, but she just realized that more of the vampires were running off as well in the same direction. 

“They’re retreating!” She realized with a smile. The wolves howled over the buildings and trees, a song of victory. She joined her voice in the song, eager to let her pack know that she was safe, to celebrate that they had won the night. 

Adora was the first to find them, wrapping them both in a hug instantly with her long arms, lifting them off the ground. It was easy to forget how big she was, not just in this form, but larger than most of her pack mates in the same form. Of course, with her size came the tradeoff of her mental capacities. Right now, she was just relieved that her two friends were okay, unable to speak it verbally, and so instead licking both of their faces. 

“Ew, gross!” Catra complained, pushing off of her girlfriend with a smile. “Absolutely not! Adora! Down, girl!” Glimmer’s heart fluttered, a feather tickling the insides of her ribs at the sight of these two beautiful people celebrating together.

“Catra, you’re hurt,” Bow pointed out, trotting up closer to the group. He was in his smaller form, weak from the lack of moonlight but still able to communicate. Adora immediately backed up, seeming to understand, her ears pulling back anxiously as she checked Catra over. 

“Was anybody taken?” Catra asked, blowing right past Bow’s question. 

“All the vampires left without any hostages.” The other wolf with Bow confirmed. She was a Hunter of the pack, with more experience to her years than the rest of the pack that had come on this trip. She had taken the same smaller form as Bow, and her streaked gray fur was still standing up from the fight. “No bodies either. Zero victims, ma’am.”

Glimmer would always feel strange having a more experienced veteran wolf of her pack referring to her with such formalities. But for now, there were more important things. She smelled Catra closely, seeming to make her confused at the sudden movement.

“I can’t believe you took that hit for me.” Glimmer told her, observing the wound. It hardly seemed to break skin, but it still shined purple with the marks of the damage. Her tougher vampire skin prevented it from breaking, but it still cost her in pain. “What do you need? I don’t know how to heal vampires.” She asked, lowering her head to be level with Catra’s. Her mismatched eyes were beautiful even in the low light. 

“There’s only one thing.” Catra said uncomfortably. “But you aren’t going to like it.”

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


By the time they got back to Bright Moon, it was almost morning. Catra was the most eager to get back, since she was in danger if she was caught in the sunlight. And all along the way, she stumbled in her step, weak from over a week without feeding and the damage she had sustained in battle. She even ignored her orders to be chaperoned, and instead of reporting in her successful mission to the Queen, opted to keep walking right to her and Adora’s room even when they called out her name. She had to collapse in her seat and wait for the others to finish their report instead while she tried to not go insane. 

The thirst was back. A dry itch in her throat that made her crave salty sweet ichor. She thought she would still have more time, she had more time than this the last time. But that was before she learned about how much injury she could take in battle. Apparently she couldn’t be so reckless, or else risk speeding up her feeding. 

She could hear everything, every heartbeat in Bright Moon castle. There were dozens of them, all around her, echoing on the glass castle atop the hill and hitting her ears like a hammer. ThumpaThumpaThumpa from every direction, all in even measured beats. Some were in groups, some were excited, some rested, some were moving, and she could hear the beat of all of them until it drowned out every other sound around her. 

It wasn’t long before the door opened, letting in a beam of light across the floor, and she hissed at the burn in her eyes just from the electric reflection. This weak, she knew that all light would hurt her. 

“Catra?” Adora had transformed back, out of strength to keep up her largest form on the weakest moon cycle. Her voice came through, her heartbeat picking up with worry as she came closer to Catra. Catra could make out the red flannel crouching next to her, big blue eyes worried as she checked Catra over. 

“She’s hurt, I think she needs blood.” Glimmer was here too? Catra noticed the vague pink shape over Adora’s shoulder. Catra weakly nodded her confirmation to Glimmer. She didn’t want to admit it. This need for blood, it was shameful here in the Pack. They might hate her for it; that’s why she had been putting it off. She should have drank before they left for their mission, but she hadn’t and now that she was injured she might need two feedings to heal herself. 

“Any volunteers?” She slurred lazily, remembering Angella’s orders on the conditions of her stay here. Willing participants only. As though she would ever take it from someone without their consent, like some wild animal. Still, she needed them to know that she was getting permission. 

“I’ll do it--”

“I’ll help--” Both Glimmer and Adora spoke up at once, and cut each other off when they realized. 

Adora and Catra looked at Glimmer in surprise. Even Glimmer herself looked surprised. 

“Glimmer, you don’t have to,” Adora started, unsure as though she wasn’t confident that Glimmer knew what she was getting into. 

“Eh, she might have to,” Catra corrected, eliciting more concern from Adora. 

“That bad?”

“I’ve been putting it off.”

“But she’s never done it before,”

“I want to!” Glimmer spoke up to her defense, shocking herself further still. “Catra got hurt protecting me, I kind of owe it to her. Plus with both of you living here, I was going to have to volunteer eventually anyways, right? I want to help, just let me do this for you.”

“Look I don’t really care either way.” Catra sighed. The thirst was not patient enough for them to figure this out. “I just need blood  _ now _ , preferably two targets so I don’t drain someone.” The urgency in her voice pointed out the time sensitivity of the matter to them, and Adora started rolling up her sleeves. 

“Okay. Look, I’ll go first so that you can see how it’s done, okay?”

“Can it really be that complicated? All you have to do is sit there, right?”

Adora went to the cooler under her desk, removing an ice pack and a bandage from it. She held the ice pack to her wrist. 

“If you’ve never had it done before, you might lose more blood than your body is usually used to losing, and you could go into shock.” She explained. “Or worse if you don’t know when to push them off of you.” 

Blood rapture. Adora and Catra had explained it when they made their plan to save the village from kidnappings. Draining a host dry, killing them slowly over the course of an hour. It was how they knew that the vampires would rather kidnap their prey than hunt, it would leave them vulnerable in the open too long. Glimmer gulped, a bit uncertain of her decision, but didn’t speak it. 

Adora sat herself down directly behind Catra on the bed, so that Catra sat between her legs. She was still taller than the vampire, looming over her shoulder. 

“Other than that, it’s pretty straightforward.” Adora explained with a hint of a smile at being able to help Catra. 

She removed the ice pack, numbness underneath its cool surface to help with the initial sting of contact, and offered her wrist to Catra. She didn’t hesitate, and took Adora’s forearm in both her hands, bringing it to her mouth. Glimmer winced, expecting some violent display of blood before she started draining the life out of Adora drop by drop. But to her surprise, Catra just gently nicked the skin with her fang to create a small cut. Before it could start bleeding, she closed her mouth around it and gently worked her tongue over the fresh wound, lightly lapping up the blood that seeped out. 

Glimmer relaxed slightly, her expression becoming confused. That was it? Just gentle lapping as the blood slowly drips out? It wasn’t nearly as frightening or disgusting as Glimmer thought it would be. This whole time, she had the image of a feeding vampire in her mind as some greedy and clumsy act, violently forcing the blood out of them with their horrible fangs until they were a corpse. But this, it was almost calming to watch, the way they were both so calm. Catra made sure not to spill or leak a drop of blood, careful around the small wound, and Adora focused all her attention on her wrist and Catra’s mouth around it, keeping careful track of her movements should she get out of control. 

Neither of them noticed the way that Glimmer was starring, the way that her cheeks flushed red at the intimate scene before her. It seemed like something intimate to her, the way they were so close to each other that they were pressed up against each other. Adora was holding Catra in her arms and legs, almost protecting her, while still at the same time offering up her own blood for the other woman to drink from. Catra was totally relaxed, more relaxed than Glimmer had ever seen her, totally trusting in Adora to help her get what she needed to recover. She wasn’t tight as a spring like she was in battle, not fierce or savage as she drank what she needed. It was intimate, it was loving and mellow. There wasn’t a murder scene of blood spilling out everywhere. It was affectionate and trusting and clean, simple as could be. 

She wasn’t sure how long she had been standing there staring at them. The entire time, all three of them were focused on the task at hand. Glimmer thought it was almost beautiful to watch, the care they both took in looking out for each other, as the other two got through the process of feeding. 

Eventually Adora started to look more tired herself as Catra was reinvigorated. More color and fullness in her face, a brightness in her eyes being restored. Adora was careful to keep track of the time as Catra lapped at the wound, eventually becoming paler and more sleepy. As soon as she noticed, she tossed Glimmer the ice pack, which she hardly caught while her clumsy hands failed to catch up to her gay brain. 

“Ice your wrist so it’s numb.” Adora advised her. “It stings a tiny bit when she bites, but this will help. Then after that it doesn’t hurt. Just like getting a shot.”

Glimmer sat down across from them on a desk chair and followed the directions, choosing to offer her non-dominant left wrist, and placing the cold pack on top of the delicate skin. 

Within a few minutes, Adora started to push herself away from Catra. Catra resisted, trying to locate the smell of blood once again once it was removed, and trying to get closer to it, but Adora used her gentle strength to ease Catra back down and away from it. Catra grumbled sleepily, like a child protesting having to wake up early. 

“No Catra, no more.” Adora said firmly, reaching for the bandage with her free hand. The cut barely bled, it wasn’t deep enough to warrant heavy bleeding. She kept Catra down in her seat on the bed while she squirmed weakly, trying to get more of the delicious ichor. 

“I stii’ need m’r,” Catra grumbled. 

Adora looked over to Glimmer, looking for a sign that she was ready. Glimmer nodded, her eyes full of determination even if her heart faltered due to her fear, even if it was simple and mainly painless it was still all so new to her. Glimer moved over onto the bed, the opposite side of Catra that Adora was on. 

Unlike Catra and Adora, Catra and Glimmer sat next to each other, slightly across as Catra faced Glimmer more. There was no hunger in her eyes as she feared, but a soft expression of gratefulness. Glimmer put her wrist forward to Catra, who gently took it in her soft hands. She moved slowly, not wanting to scare Glimmer. 

Glimmer shut her eyes and grit her teeth in anticipation of the pain to come. She could feel Catra’s warm breath across her skin as she brought her wrist closer to her mouth. Surely, Catra would be able to hear her heart pounding against her ribs. Still, Glimmer wasn’t afraid. It was more like she was excited. This was, after all, an intimate experience that she had never experienced before. 

The prick came, slight as a needle but far less invasive than she was expecting. She opened one eye to see that Catra had already removed her fang from the site, and was waiting for the thin line of slow blood to appear from the cut. Glimmer immediately relaxed, knowing that the pain was over. In fact it wasn’t even as bad as she feared, just as Adora had said: just like getting a shot. 

Soon a hint of red appeared at the site, and Catra lowered her mouth to it just as she had done with Adora. Glimmer felt a tightly wound heat growing in her abdomen as Catra’s lips gently pressed against her sensitive skin, one that she tried to ignore and push down. She had to focus on this task, not mess it up with her stupid lesbian thoughts. Even if Catra’s rough tongue over her new wound tickled. 

“H-how will I know when to push her off?” She asked Adora, who rejoined them on the opposite side of Catra now that her bandage was secured. Adora didn’t seem worried. 

“She’ll fill up and stop on the second person before she drains you.” Adora explained. “Two people is a lot at once. With how much she took from me, she won’t even get close to draining you.”

Glimmer calmed down slightly at this. She looked back to the numbness in her wrist, where she could still feel the tickles of lips and tongue over the blood that trickled over her wrist. Once again, Catra was neat and tidy, not spilling a drop. She didn’t suck it out of her like a straw, just licked up what trickled out politely. It still felt just as intimate, to offer herself up like this and supply Catra with her only source of food. 

Adora drank a bottle of water from the cooler, regaining some of the fluids that she had just lost. She still observed the drinking carefully, and absentmindedly started combing her fingers through Catra’s curls of hair. 

As Adora predicted, it was a much shorter process with Glimmer than it was for Adora, and Catra eventually became lazier in her habit, lapping more slowly as though she were getting full and just wanted one last drop. Soon enough she had to push away Glimmer’s wrist, and sighed contentedly. Glimmer cradled her cut wrist to her chest as Adora came forward to bandage it up for her. Catra laid back on the bed, seemingly at last content and happy. She made a grumbling sound as she got comfortable, and Glimmer thought she was half asleep. 

“Is she going to be alright?”

Adora chuckled as she focused on taping the gauze over Glimmer’s wrist. It had already stopped bleeding, the bandage was more of a formality in order to prevent it from getting reopened or aggravated. 

“Oh Catra will be perfectly fine once she sleeps it off.” Adora assured. 

“Can’t sleep,” Catra pointed out from the pillows. Adora chuckled once again as she finished off Glimmer’s bandaid. 

“Right. Vampires can’t sleep.” Adora corrected. “But she’ll just rest while awake until she feels better, probably in a few hours. Now come on, we have to eat too. I’m famished. Watch your step, you’ll feel a little light headed.”

Glimmer took Adora’s hand as they both got to their feet. Her head spun and her vision darkened for a moment, then Adora was pressing a bottle of water into her hand. She eagerly drank it as they left to find some food. 

The hallway was still brightly lit in the darkness of the night, and they squinted against the quick contrast. Instantly, Adora wrapped Glimmer in a bone-crushing hug that lifted her feet off the ground. She was about to ask why, but Adora answered as though reading her mind. 

"Just, thank you. Thanks so much."

"Oh, i-it was nothing." Glimmer insisted. Adora still held her close and Glimmer prayed she couldn't hear her fast heartbeat. "It wasn't even that bad. I might even do it again."

"Not just helping with that." Adora said as she finally released Glimmer, gripping her shoulders in her hands. "But I know that it must have been scary and uncomfortable for your first time. But just, thank you for so much else. Thank you for letting me come and stay here, and then giving Catra a chance, and working with us. You've helped us so much more than you realize."

"Don't worry about it, okay?" Glimmer said, hand on top of Adora's. "I'm here for you. That's what a pack is for."

"Still. I just needed you to know how grateful I am. For everything."

They walked together towards the dining area of the castle, a large room with an open ceiling to allow them to cook over several fire pits in the ground. 

“You seem to really know your way around feeding a vampire.” Glimmer mused. Adora shrugged as they walked. 

“Well, my superiors would feed on me once I was old enough. They did for all of us that weren’t turned.” She said casually, as though it meant nothing to her. 

“Really?”

“Well yeah, we were told that if they fed on us they wouldn’t have to feed on other sources… I guess now I know what that means.” Adora admitted darkly. “Mainly for our unit, it was Shadow Weaver. She basically raised us. I figured I owed it to her somehow. We were told that whoever was the best in the group would get turned into a vampire, and the rest of the unit would be for their feeding.”

“That… I’m sorry, but that sounds like no way to live.” Glimmer shook her head. 

“I didn’t know there was any other way.” Adora said softly. But then her eyes lit up with optimism and she smiled down at Glimmer. “But I’m glad we left that place. This is much better than what I thought I had wanted.”

Glimmer and Adora joined the rest of the Pack as they were finishing up their meals. They sat with Bow, who was still transformed. Glimmer’s stomach growled when she smelled the cooked meats over all the small fire pits in the room as they joined Bow at his. 

They each transformed into their large quadruped form, the shape of a wolf in a larger size, their most medium shape. The three of them burned their tongues on the cooking turkey at first they were so eager for food, but made short work of several birds worth of food each. Their teeth gnashed into the tender seasoned meats, moist and smokey in flavor, and Adora as usual out ate the other two put together. They made quite a mess, but didn’t care. Today was a good day. A successful mission, and a shared moment of between Adora, Catra, and Glimer that made their hearts feel full of warmth. 

When they did return, still trotting on all fours too tired to transform back, Catra was right where they had left her. Adora smiled at Glimmer with her tongue hanging out. 

“I don’t suppose you’re still hungry for a little Catra sandwich?” She asked, already climbing into bed around Catra. She plopped her weight down on top of the vampire, who made a muffled protest. 

“Aforaaaaa!” She whined under all the golden fur. Glimmer was too tired to protest, and so got on the bed with them. They each curled inwards, their legs tangling as their arms crossed each other’s bodies. Glimmer could hear Adora’s tail thumping against the bed as she wagged it, and she snuggled her head further into the nest they shared, finding nothing but comfort and warmth in its folds. Catra felt so small between their large bodies pressed up together. Adora rested her chin on Glimmer’s head, and Catra’s squirming finally earned her limbs freedom while the rest of her was trapped between the two wolves. By now she had observed how close the pack was when it came to things like physical touch, and figured that this was normal. 

Obviously, she could have escaped if she wanted to. But she didn’t want to. She just wouldn’t admit it. So, here she was, sandwiched between two walls of fuzz and fluff, able to hear their heartbeats slow down as they drifted towards sleep, and she was helpless, unable to escape at all. She could never admit to them that this was the coziest she had ever felt in her life, surrounded by downy fur and wrapped up in their tangled limbs, letting their warmth ease her into hope and trust in them. She was safe here, between two killer beasts who would protect her, and she them, at any cost. She watched the fur bend and floof out when she blew on it to get some out of her face. 

She could not sleep. She wanted to. God she had tried to. But it was beyond her reach now as a vampire. But here, between two sleeping werewolves that she held the greatest fondness for, was pretty close. She figured it was the closest she was ever going to get, and realized that she was okay with that. 

artofkace.tumblr.com.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ceck it out, finally figured out how to add art into this mammerjammer!
> 
> The Rush (Or as I like to call it: the Bitchening) is officially over at work and I am back at a regular schedule rather than straight open to close every single day that we're open. So updates can get more frequent again, hopefully! Sorry for the hiatus. Check out Art of Kace's work, its a delight. Always comment with your thoughts!


	6. Orbit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (spiderman pointing at spiderman meme) Glimmer is in love with you!  
> (spiderman pointing at spiderman) no she's in love with YOU!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't posted for a while because my mother passed away. I've been doing my best. But I will never fully abandon a work that is unfinished. Updates will be sporadic and less frequent. But, I wanted to get this out before I had to go back to my day job, as my leave of absence ends tomorrow. 
> 
> As always, check out artofkace for drawing this AU on tumblr. They have since moved blogs over to kaereth.tumblr.com so definitely check it out! And, you can still find all their great old art from before the move on artofkace.tumblr. 
> 
> This is probably the gayest thing I've ever written yet....
> 
> Stay healthy, make good choices, tell your family you love them. Enjoy!

After the attack that Adora, Glimmer, and Catra helped prevent in the village, there was a quiet pause in the valley from vampire attacks. All signs pointed to the Horde retreating to within the Fright Zone to play it safe. No doubt they would rather not take any risks until they had a new strategy, given the change in power balance so suddenly.

While the Crimson Horde licked their wounds, the pack of Bright Moon got rest.

Adora got to see Catra go through all the new experiences, learning about the Pack dynamic that she had learned about when she first got here. The shock of easy intimacy amongst people, the awkward fumbling over their routines and traditions, the confusion over where she stood in their natural, unspoken hierarchy. 

Even though Catra was relieved of her chaperone officially, she was still always accompanied unprofessionally, much to her ire. 

She thought that once free from Shadow Weaver and all the other vampire oppressors who raised them, that she would  _ finally _ be free to be with Adora. But apparently, they could never have a moment alone. Just when she thought they would, Glimmer and Bow would appear as though magically summoned. 

_ Maybe this time would be different, _ she thought to herself. 

She took Adora’s hand and pulled her along the hall to their shared room. Another night of training left Adora sore, but confident in the growing power of her abilities. By now, she was just as capable as the rest of the pack, and quickly rising. But, the sun was coming up, which meant they had to get inside, more for Catra’s sake than Adora’s. Of course, it would be easier to drag her big dumb girlfriend to bed if she would stop talking with those other two. 

_ Or, maybe we’ll just end up having another accidental sleepover with Glimmer and Bow. _ Catra sighed as they neared their room. 

“No I see what you mean.” Adora argued back at Bow, all of them with a smile on their face as they entered the bedroom. “But you also said the other day that oatmeal is like a hot cereal, right? So not all cereal is cold and not all soup is hot. 

“Wait, so is oatmeal a type of soup but not cereal?” Glimmer clarified. 

“No no, they’re both soup.” Adora corrected. “I’m just saying that you can’t classify things that are or are not soup by their temperature. Just the same with cereal.”

“I’m sorry but I cannot accept that cereal is a soup!” Bow complained, making himself comfortable in a plush chair next to Glimmer. “Cereal isn’t a soup because it just  _ isn’t _ .”

“You can’t say that,” Adora said, sitting on the edge of her bed. “Not when you don’t have any qualifying classifications to  _ define _ each term. Based mainly on only their simplest definitions for each: bits of solid food, floating in an edible broth. Cereal is a soup.”

“I wouldn’t exactly call milk a broth.” Glimmer said thoughtfully. 

“Of course it's a broth.” Catra droned apathetically from the bed. She had flopped down on her back so she couldn’t see them, but she continued anyway. “It comes from an animal fat and is rich in protein. It’s a liquid. It’s used for cooking other things. What makes milk not a broth?” She really didn’t care for this conversation and would rather be alone with Adora, but these two were being idiots. Not that she cared if cereal was soup or not, but milk was definitely a broth. 

“It’s still different!” Bow protested. “Broth is  _ water based _ , usually from boiling the stock--” Catra sat up suddenly. 

“Yeah? Well what percent of milk  _ is _ water, nerd?” It was too easy to rile him up. Maybe she wouldn’t get a private night alone with Adora, but this could be fun, this having friends kind of thing. Bow was getting more and more worked up now that Catra had joined sides with Adora. 

“Well slow down Catra,” Adora said with a laugh, and the traitorous thoughts that Catra was thinking about Adora were entertaining if nothing else. Her smile was only for Catra, loving every second of getting to see this side of her. This creative goofball teasing that she had missed. Catra could already feel the bright warmth of her smile blowing away the doubts about their night off. It made her feel like she had a heart. 

“If you want to say that milk is water-based given what percentage of it is water, then you really stretch the definition of broth. I mean, people are also almost completely made of water, are people soup?” Adora continued. Glimmer laughed. 

“ _ People are not soup! _ ” Bow shrieked in a mixture of disbelief, irritation, and affection. All four of them were laughing. At some point Bow had stood up, the energy of the conversation animating his body to pace around the room. 

“Well they are for me!” Catra argued, enjoying pushing his buttons. “I drink people soup, cause I’m a vampire!” Adora laughed so hard that tears came to her eyes, and all of Catra’s dark thoughts evaporated. She would die again for the light of that laugh. Even if it meant that despite giving up her whole life in the Horde for Adora, didn’t necessarily mean that they could have that life to themselves. 

Then Catra looked to the other two wolves in the room, to see if she had a similar effect on them as well. And some of those doubts came back. 

Glimmer was still sitting on the couch, and she had a certain look on her face. It was one that Catra recognized, although she had never seen it before, she had worn it as a mask many times over many years. 

Her cheeks were flushed red, and Catra could practically smell the blood rising on her. Her eyes, soft and starstruck, fixated on Adora. There was a gravity to them, like black holes, willing the subject of her view to be closer through her yearning. She leaned forward, not realizing that Catra had caught her scandalous gaze. 

“Oh my god,  _ are _ you on a soup diet?” Adora realized stars in her eyes, determination ablaze. “It’s food and it’s liquid. Protein base, comes from an animal, has all your nutrition… Guys, people  _ are _ soup! I’m soup! You’re soup! We’re all  _ soup! _ ”

Bow clutched his hair with both fists, and yelled in faux agony, causing all three of them to laugh deeply with their bellies. Catra sat as near to Adora as she could manage, laughing along with their game. But in the back of her mind, she remembered the look on Glimmer’s face when she saw Adora. 

Catra had struggled and died and given up everything to get to be with Adora. But Glimmer? If not for her, they wouldn’t have had the opportunity to leave the horde in the first place. She had given them everything. Catra couldn’t hold a candle to Glimmer. 

Catra hazarded another look at the Princess. But this time, Glimmer did notice Catra looking back at her. Glimmer’s eyes immediately sobered up, shock coloring her face as she hastily looked away. Adora and Bow hadn’t even noticed. Catra could hear Glimmer’s heart rate, already accelerated, pick up its tempo like a wild drumbeat in the room. She wasn’t sure if the werewolves could hear it as well as she could, and she wasn’t sure if Glimmer realized that Catra could hear her heart at the moment. She figured if she could, it would only pick up pace even more. It pounded in her ears like a freight train, and she had to focus hard on the sound of Bow speaking to understand any other sounds. 

“The sun is rising, I need to patrol. People are not soup and neither is cereal. Goodbye. Maybe after you guys get some sleep, some more sense will come to you.” He teased, popping out the door. 

“Can’t sleep!” Catra reminded him with a holler down the hall. He groaned, realizing that his argument fell flat on Catra’s logical facilities. 

Adora, Glimmer, and Catra were left in the room. Adora prepared for bed, unbuttoning her outer shirt and kicking off her boots. By now, both Adora and Catra were comfortable enough with the Pack, and especially Glimmer above others, to be able to change in front of her. After all, most nights Glimmer passed out right alongside them. 

More often than not, Glimmer, Adora, and Catra would all end their day together in bed. Catra, of course, couldn’t sleep. But she watched over them, thinking about nothing or everything, but never a place in between the two.

This wasn’t the first time that Catra had spotted Glimmer looking at Adora that way. It was always when she thought nobody was looking. At first, Catra thought little of it. Perhaps she was just being anxious and insecure about her new relationship with Adora, and finding patterns where there was nothing. But the more time she spent in Bright Moon, the more she noticed it, or perhaps the more it happened. She couldn’t be sure. But there was no mistaking the yearning that was in her eyes. And it was a look that was reserved for Adora. 

It was rare that Glimmer would realize she was being watched. Probably only a handful of times, enough to count on one hand. Werewolves could be dumb like that, Catra thought. Each time, Glimmer would blush brighter than a ripe tomato in the summer sunshine, quickly averting her gaze while her heart raced. Catra could hear each doomed  _ thump _ of her heart straining as though she held that heart in her hands. 

They continued to talk and laugh together, although less animated than they were before. Without thinking, they ended up all in bed together again, as they did on almost every night these days. It was technically only Adora’s, but she hardly minded, and in fact encouraged, the other two to stay with her. It was easy for Adora to fall asleep surrounded by bodies as they had grown up.

What was less easy was Catra knowing that Glimmer had a massive crush on her girlfriend. 

And honestly, she couldn’t blame her. Who wouldn’t fall in love with Adora? She had eyes. Adora could have any girl she wanted. Of course Glimmer would fall for her. She was probably falling for her since the moment Adora joined the pack. And, because neither of them was too bright, Adora had no clue and Glimmer still had it bad even though Catra was here, and dating Adora. Although it wasn’t like being on opposite sides of a supernatural war could stop Catra from her feelings for Adora. If anything, she could sympathize with the desire to not be in touch with the feelings that ate at her.

But for now, Catra loved laying down and snuggling up next to Adora when she first got here. Even if she couldn’t sleep, she would keep watch over them in the illusion of rest until they rose again with the moon. This was easy for her.

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Glimmer rested on a special dais outdoors on a high pedestal, which connected to the main castle via a long spiral stairway. She relished the moonlight in her most powerful wolf form, nose pointed upwards to the sky with her eyes closed as she absorbed her cosmic embrace. The coolness of night around was becoming more brisk with every passing week, but the warmth of magic she felt from the moonlight was brimming under her pastel fur. 

This was one of her routines, more like a ritual if you asked Catra. She and her mother were more powerful than the other werewolves in the pack due to their connection to the moon. This was how they maintained that connection. She bathed every night in the light from the moon, refreshing her link with the lunar power. 

From the top of the dais, she could see above the treetops of the nearby woods and most of the castle behind her. She could smell the breeze, turned into a gale force at this height when it was not slowed by the dense trees. She could track the path of the moon from horizon to horizon as they communicated. 

Every inhale brought her awareness of her connection, and every exhale gave her relief of mind and body. She slowly lost sight of her worries and anxiety, her bodily harm and aches, as the light healed her body and mind.

Nothing dreadful would happen if she neglected this ritual. She would be weak and drowsy the next day until she could successfully recharge. But she stuck to it well with her nocturnal habits. To the outside onlooker, it would look like she was simply sitting down and looking at the sky. But she felt each moonbeam the same way she craved food when she was hungry, sleep when she was tired. 

She could see her breath when she opened her eyes on an exhale. It misted in front of her and promised that winter was coming. Her next inhale brought a familiar scent to her awareness, but one that wasn’t there a moment ago. 

She looked down and Catra was before her, looking up at her expectantly with her arms folded behind her back. Glimmer jumped in alarm at the sudden intruder to her calm. 

“Geez Catra! You need to wear a bell or something!”

Catra grinned devilishly at her little startle prank. 

“Not my fault your hearing is so bad.”

“Well it’s not my fault that you don’t make any sound!” Glimmer huffed, forcing the fur along her spine to lower down from her alarm. Her tail lowered and her ears raised as she paced the dais on all fours. 

“Hm. Fair enough.” Catra sat on the raised up step and inspected her talon-like nails. This was, to be fair, normal of Catra’s behavior by now. She knew from spending so much time with her lately that Catra was the more devious of the Horde pair, more prone to pranks while Adora tended to focus only on making herself useful. 

“Anyway, where is Adora?” Glimmer asked, pawing up to her spot again to lie down. The two were usually somewhat inseparable, even though Catra was relieved of her orders to be chaperoned. 

“She’s out hunting with some of the pack.” Catra said with feigned disinterest. She looked from her talons to the treetops, as though hoping to spy that swift golden spot that would reveal her girlfriend. A light smile turned the corners of her eyes in amusement, thinking of Adora charging through the wilderness, leading a small squadron from the pack to a glorious kill. While Bright Moon had enough food to sustain their pack, regular weekly hunts allowed them to practice their skills, explore the territory, and exercise. No doubt it would go perfectly with Adora in charge. Behind her, Glimmer licked her paws in thought. She still felt her connection to the moon, stronger now at midnight, even if she wasn’t actively engaged in conversation with her patron. 

“So how long have you been desperately and hopelessly in love with her?” Catra asked suddenly, a sly grin painting the features of her beautiful face. Again, Glimmer was startled and physically jumped at the sudden accusation. Catra looked at her over her shoulder with a sparkle in her eye, eating up all the obvious discomfort that she had caused. Despite being the weaker of the species, she could still take down a foe five times her weight with a sentence. 

Glimmer stammered while her brain tried to conjure some excuse that could save her. 

“I--that’s-- no! It’s not-- I don’t!” She receded slightly and Catra almost burst out laughing right there, but that would give her up too soon. 

“Oh you  _ looooove _ her!” She teased in a sing-song voice. 

“No, I don’t!” Glimmer barked. “Why would you say that? That’s ridiculous!” 

Catra put a hand to her chin as though she were a scholar in deep thought. She closed her eyes as she confidently lied through her pointed teeth. 

“It seems as though you are unaware.” She teased. “That vampires… can  _ read minds! _ ” Glimmer gasped and Catra absolutely reveled in the power she held in her prank. Glimmer was having too much of a panic to consider that Catra might have been messing with her. 

“I-I’m sorry!” Glimmer replied anxiously. She pulled her ears back and lowered her head as her tail stood straight up in worry. “I didn’t mean to! I didn’t want to get in between you two!”

“So you admit it!” 

“I can’t control my lesbian brain! I swear I’m not going to make any moves on Adora!” Glimmer continued. Catra finally couldn’t contain it anymore, and burst out laughing bent over and clutching her sides. Glimmer paused and watched nervously, wondering what was happening. 

“Vampires can’t read minds, Glimmer.” She confessed. Glimmer’s jaw dropped. “But still. Thanks for confessing anyway!” She laughed. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell Adora or anything.”

“HOly  _ stars _ Catra!” Glimmer raked her blunt claws over her head. “I can’t believe I fell for that. I’m so sorry Catra!” She was caught in a terrible place between guilt and anger at Catra’s rascality. She couldn’t take back her confession now. 

“You’re almost as transparent as Adora. Almost, but she still takes the prize.” Catra continued to tease. Glimmer was shocked that Catra wasn’t lashing out at her for confessing about having feelings for her girlfriend. In fact, it was more like she was enjoying it. Was she planning on using this information against her? She should hate her.

“But how did you know?” She still wasn’t entirely convinced about the reading minds thing, but that could have just been her own anxiety giving her preposterous ideas. Catra sat down again calmly, even though she had a shit eating grin. 

“I’m intuitive.” She bragged openly. “But hey, don’t worry.” She added on, though it didn’t sound genuine. It was somewhere between honest and teasing, but not thoughtful. That was the trick with Catra, she had learned. Decoding the guarded, hidden feelings that motivated her riddles. 

“Your Highness,” Nadia interrupted them. She stood at the top of the staircase in her human form, her face cross as she sensed her Princess’s unease. Her role within the pack was to protect the Queen and the Princess, and she could instantly tell from the awkward mood that she had interrupted that Catra had upset Glimmer. And that meant that she no longer was in favor with Catra. “Is there a problem here?” She said in a husky, low voice as she glared over Glimmer’s shoulder at Catra. 

“Oh um, no,” GLimmer stammered again nervously. “Actually, I was uh, just leaving!” She lied poorly, moving towards the stairs. 

“Glimmer, wait--” Catra called out to her, but she quickly disappeared as all four of her legs propelled her away from the awkward encounter. Naida let her pass, pausing to snarl at Catra venomously, before she followed the pink wolf down into the night. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Catra didn’t think much of her teasing. At least before she decided to do it. But after seeing Glimmer’s reaction, she started to have second thoughts. 

This kind of ribbing and teasing was not only common but almost expected in the Horde. None of it really meant anything. So far, she hadn’t seen anything in the pack that would indicate things were different here. Friends would tease each other all the time in good fun. 

This seemed to be more serious than she had expected. She had struck a nerve, maybe taken things too far. It dragged down on her slightly, getting heavier the more she thought about it and the more Glimmer avoided her in panic. 

Catra and Adora were having a meal in the fire pit atrium. Rather, Adora was enjoying her meal in human form while Catra sat nearby. The sky was open to them, letting the starlight in and the smoke rise out, taking with it the hypnotizing aroma of cooking meats. It was late in the small hours of the morning, almost time for sleep or pretending to sleep again soon. Adora had succeeded in her hunting mission, and was salivating over her spoils. Catra had to admit that the venison smelled intoxicating over the spitting embers of the fire. It was one of the many small things that made her wonder how things might have been different if she hadn’t let Shadow Weaver bite her. But she knew that even if she had resisted at the time, it wouldn’t have changed the outcome. 

Adora still didn’t know what Catra had learned, nor did she know that Catra had gone to Glimmer about it. She didn’t want to say anything just yet. 

She was, of course, as clueless as she always was and couldn’t seem to register what Catra was upset about as she continued to happily regale the details of her hunt. 

“So basically, the time of year can change the animals. According to Orla, anyway. They move around all over the world depending on the seasons.” Adora happily babbled. She was still excited to learn everything that she could, and happy to share all that she knew so that Catra would have a smoother transition. Catra only half listened, focusing on the flickering orange lights within the ashy cinders of the fire pit they sat around. But she noticed when Adora’s posture changed, she sat upright and interrupted herself by a distraction at the doorway. She looked up to see Glimmer was entering. 

“Hey, Glimmer! Over here!” Adora waved to her, beaming. Glimmer hesitated, causing the person behind her to bump into her. Her face turned red as a logger’s flannel, and she hastily walked back out of the atrium as quickly as she had come in. Even though she was in human form, Catra could tell from her demeanor that she had left with her tail between her legs. 

“That’s… odd.” Adora said. “I guess she must have been busy.” She picked up a stick in order to stir around the embers to keep the heat going, not thinking much of the exchange. But Catra held her knees close to her chest and replayed it over in her mind, with a singular thought becoming harder to ignore. 

Glimmer didn’t just have a crush. She was  _ in love _ . Deeply and hopelessly. 

She had made an underestimation. She should have known better, knowing the inescapable power of Adora’s charm that had snagged her own heart. Just being with her now felt more recharging and refreshing than any amount of blood she could drink. 

“You don’t think that…” Adora started to ask a question, but then hesitated. Catra waited with bated breath for the second half, but Adora shook her head and looked away. “No, neverminded.” She dismissed it completely. 

It seemed as though Catra’s conversation with Glimmer wasn’t just affecting Glimmer, but now Adora as well. Her gut twisted in guilt wondering if the friendship between the three of them was able to be repaired. 

Hopefully, it could all be forgotten soon. Perhaps by the next dusk, they would be able to talk normally again. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Adora couldn’t sleep. Normally she slept like a rock, all the energy that it took to transform on top of all the activity that kept her busy all night usually did that to her. She could sleep for twelve hours straight if Catra let her. 

But tonight, she lay in the far too plush overly soft bed, next to Catra as usual, and sleep was the last thing she wanted. 

Adora thought about what had happened earlier at dinner. Glimmer was acting strange, that much was clear. She may have been slow at times, but she wasn’t a total idiot. Something was bothering Glimmer. And the worst part was that it had to do with Catra. 

When she had left for the hunt, things seemed fine. They were all together, talking, laughing… longing glances across the room that Glimmer didn’t realize Adora had seen… then when she came back, Catra had hardly breathed a word to her. Glimmer was never in the same room, and both avoided eye contact with the other,  _ and _ Adora. 

Was... was she the problem? Did Adora do something wrong? Had she overstepped some unspoken werewolf faux-pas again? Did she offend them somehow? She felt like she was sinking further into the bottomless bed with each dark thought, like it was swallowing her whole. The dark room was growing darker around her. 

“Adora? I can tell you’re awake.” Catra spoke softly, letting her hand rest on Adora’s shoulder. Adora tensed at the contact, a momentary flinch that was habit to them both. Thankfully Catra recognized this.

She should have guessed that Catra would be able to tell if she was awake. She didn’t sleep, her hearing rivaled that of a fully transformed werewolf. 

“Don’t deny it, Adora. Come on, talk to me.” Catra insisted. Adora rolled over onto her back and sighed. The room felt too quiet, with only the sound of her breath. For the first time since she was bitten, she felt cold lying in bed with Catra, who’s body was static. 

“I don’t really know.” Adora admitted. “I’m just nervous.” 

Adora could imagine Catra nodding in understanding, one of her rare moments of being genuine and vulnerable. 

“You’re worried about Glimmer.” Catra asked in a way that meant she already knew. Adora looked up at the  silhouetted  shape of her head in the darkness in surprise. 

“Can you read minds now?” She teased, if anything complimenting Catra’s intuition. But Catra unexpectedly stiffened and sat upright. 

“What--no! What did Glimmer tell you?” She quickly defended. Adora sat upright and reached out for Catra. 

“What? Nothing-- why?” Adora asked, suddenly alarmed. Catra shied away, suddenly aware that she had given away too much. She didn’t want to torture Catra, but she needed to know that this wasn’t her fault. “Catra, what is going on with you two? I know that everyone thinks I won’t notice or that I’m dumb-- I know that  _ you _ think that-- but something is up!” As she talked, she swung her legs over the side of the bed, turning her back to Catra as she turned up a light. 

“You’re not dumb,” Catra quickly retaliated, ready to defend Adora from herself. 

“Then  _ talk to me, _ ” Adora pleaded, eyes wide. 

Her heart raced with worry at how their voices rose slowly, inching towards the ‘fight’ department. They hadn’t had a serious fight since they got together, that night that they brawled in the cave. What if it got physical again? What if it  _ was _ her fault? She knew that Catra could have any girl she wanted-- it honestly wasn’t fair, with those  _ eyes _ and her laugh, and when she  _ smirked _ and showed off those fangs, it oughta be illegal!-- would this fight push them away enough to shove her into the arms of a better woman? Glimmer was, admittedly, much more powerful and skilled as a werewolf than Adora was. She couldn’t lose Catra, not after everything that it took for them to be together. 

Adora sighed. She forced her form to relax and lowered her voice when she spoke to Catra again. 

“If you know that I’m not stupid…” She began awkwardly, scrambling to find the right way to phrase it without stepping on a landmine. “Then you should know that... I know. Okay?”

When she looked into Catra’s bi colored eyes, she saw the pain before ripping off the band aid. She saw clarity at being outed for the secret between the three of them. But Catra herself remained silent, and Adora continued. 

“I think I knew for a while.” She said sadly. She could feel tears welling in her eyes, and prayed to the Moon that she wouldn’t break down in front of Catra during their moment of truth. “But… I didn’t want to admit it because I couldn’t bear to lose you.”

Catra sighed in defeat and sat on the edge of the bed again, shaking her head. 

“I… understand.” She choked out, not lifting her eyes from the floor. “It hurts. To hear it out loud. But I think I understand.”

Adora felt like her rib cage was being pried open and laid bare in front of her. The shock was worse than the pain. 

“I’m just… so sorry, Adora. I’m sorry that this,” She gestured to the air between them, “wasn’t enough.” 

A tear came down Adora’s cheek but she hastily wiped it away as she turned away from Catra. She tried to chuckle but it came out wetter and more choked than she thought. 

“Don’t be.” Adora said. “After all, you can have any girl you wanted. I should have known you would move on to better things after a while.”

“Yeah, well.” Catra chuckled in a similar soft way. “You’re the one who got what you really wanted, right? You’re pretty lucky… she’s really special.”

They stood like that, facing away from each other and scared to move forward for a full three minutes before Adora realized. 

“Wait, what?” She asked, turning around. Her voice was clearer now with more confusion than sadness. Catra looked up at her with confusion. 

“What?” Catra questioned. 

“What do you mean ‘I’m the lucky one, she’s special,’ what is that supposed to mean?”

Catra stood up and walked over to Adora.

“I mean… congratulations? You can go and be with Glimmer now. That’s what you wanted, right?”

Adora’s jaw just about hit the floor in shock. 

“Um… aren’t  _ you _ going to be with Glimmer now?”

“Wait wait wait…” Catra’s brow furrowed. “When you said… that you  _ know _ … you meant….”

“About how Glimmer is in love with you?” Adora explained like it was obvious. “I’ve seen how the two of you are. The way she looks at you, hangs on your every word. You two just fit together so perfectly. That’s why you two have been so weird lately, right? You two are crushing on each other. And honestly, I mean I can’t blame her. Have you looked in a mirror lately?” Adora started grumbling to herself towards the end of her train of thought. Catra lightly slapped Adora to snap her out of it, causing only more hurt and confusion on her face. 

“Ow! What was that?”

Catra took Adora’s head in both her hands, squishing her face. Adora was brilliant, clever, amazing. But she could be so  _ thick _ some times. 

“Adora, Glimmer has a crush on  _ you _ .” She explained plainly. “You left me for her once when you abandoned the horde, I understand why you’re drawn to her. You’re both werewolves, she freed you, I get it. I swear when she stares at you she has actual  _ stars in her eyes. _ She’s been avoiding us because I teased her about how she loves you!”

A full minute went by in silence while Catra allowed Adora’s brain to process, all while squishing her face. She could see the gears turning behind her eyes at this information. When the pin dropped, she seized Catra’s wrists off her head and held them fast. 

“Wait, what? No.” Adora cried incredulously. “No way! I would bet my bottom dollar, Glimmer is in love with you, Catra. You just won’t admit it because of your own self worth issues!” She insisted. 

“Yeah, no. That’s not what’s happening here.” Catra backed up a step as she explained. “She has had it  _ bad _ for you since before I ever even arrived on the scene, Adora!”

“No, Glimmer is in love with  _ you _ ”

“No, she loves  _ you _ ,” They insisted back and forth, each totally convinced that the other was the subject of Glimmer’s affection. Adora sat on the bed and hugged a pillow in confusion. Catra practically paced a hole into the floor. 

“Wait!” Adora interjected suddenly. “Does this mean we’re still broke up?” She asked in a meek, shy voice. 

“No. Wait… I don’t know. Well, no!” Catra answered. It didn’t do much for the anxiety of either of them, or the confusion. “Wait wait wait.” Catra said again, waving her hands. She took a deep and steadying inhale and exhale, even though breathing was a thing she was still growing out of the habit of doing. Adora waited patiently. 

“It depends.” Catra concluded. “Because we need to clarify the exact details of this whole… situation.” she again gestured to the air between them. “Before we know what’s going on.”

It took Adora only a second to register what she meant. 

“Oh, right!” She realized, standing up. “But first,” She closed the distance between them and captured Catra’s face in her hands, her lips soon after in her own. Catra relaxed slightly, although shocked at the sudden gesture. It wasn’t passionate, just brief and soft, everything they needed it to be. 

“Just in case.” Adora said, her cheeks blushing a delicious red. She pressed her forehead against Catra’s, and put one hand over her stone-still heart. “No matter what. I love you, Catra.”

Catra snapped out of her shock as she realized. She wrapped Adora in her arms and squeezed.

“No matter what.” She agreed. “I love you too.” She admitted more quietly. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  


Glimmer wasn’t exactly sure what she was doing here, in Adora and Catra’s room. Sure, she spent most of her nights here by now, but she was woken up and dragged from her bed into their in the middle of the day as though something urgent were going on. Glimmer had never really been an early riser to begin with, but she trusted Adora, leading her by the hand down to their room. If it had been Catra, she would have to have awkwardly refused, after their last conversation. But since it was Adora, and since she was too tired to think clearly, she simply momentarily forgot about what had happened that afternoon, and was pulled along the hallways of the castle, flooded with sunshine from the ever present glass on every surface as she groggily rubbed her eyes. 

When she was brought into the room, she saw Catra and remembered, waking her up quickly. Adora asked her to sit down, and she did. This had to be urgent. Clearly something was wrong. She was more awake and present now, but… nothing happened. 

Which is why she was so confused about being in here. 

Because it seemed urgent, but then wouldn’t something have happened by now? Why did they bring her here? She shrunk back at the thought that they talked about what had happened between her and Catra. Was she in trouble? No, that was stupid. She was the alpha here.

Adora and Catra both didn’t seem to know where to start. They both stood next to each other in front of her, slightly turned away from each other. It certainly did seem…. Less clingy than usual, for them. Catra covered her mouth with her hand as she stared at the ground in deep thought, perhaps trying to think of how to start. Adora, much the same, was biting her nails nervously, one hand on her hip. Clearly they had brought her into something that none of the three of them were exactly prepared for. 

Well, time to alpha up and get things going, Glimmer thought. She opened her mouth and raised her hand to speak, catching their attention. 

“Is there… a reason? That you needed me here in the middle of the day?” She asked unsure. Catra rubbed her neck and Adora folded her hands in front of her face. Whatever was bothering them, it was certainly difficult to talk about. “Is everything okay?” She asked with more concern. 

“Yes, everything is… okay.” Adora said nervously, pushing back some loose strands of hair. “Um… nothing is…  _ wrong. _ Per se.” Catra sighed in exasperation at her girlfriend. 

“Look, Glimmer.” Catra tried. It may have been the first time that she had actually used Glimmer’s real name. “We just need you to. Settle a bet for us.” She said like it was almost a question. Few things got under Catra’s skin like this. Glimmer had certainly never seen her act like this before. 

“Okaaaay….” Glimmer said, waiting for more context. The seconds dragged on painfully long. 

“Err, you see.” Adora started again, anxiously scuffing her toe in the carpet as she held her hands behind her back. “We needed to ask your opinion on this. Because we both thought that uh… well, we both  _ thought _ that we knew how you thought about it, but turns out, that uh, maybe we both thought different from  _ each other _ , which wasn’t what we thought  _ you _ thought--Not that I, or  _ we _ , would ever assume to think that what we  _ thought _ you thought--”

Catra groaned to cut Adora off from embarrassing herself, or confusing herself, any further. 

“Look, we want to know if you are in love with Adora, or with me.” Catra said plainly. If she had blood, her face would be red as a tomato right now. Glimmer’s eyebrows flew up in surprise. “As you know, I’m fairly sure that you have the hots for Adora.” 

“And  _ I’m _ pretty sure that you have it bad for Catra.” Adora explained, each other them gesturing to the other. 

Glimmer hesitated a moment, caught like a deer in fantasy headlights. 

“Of course, no judgment!” Catra quickly stated nervously, waving her hands. 

“Right, we just want you to be perfectly honest!” Adora agreed in a similar manner. 

“No hard feelings, no making an ugly scene, no fighting,”

“We just needed to sort this out, is all!”

“Just so we’re all on the same page!”

“No pressure!” They were tripping over themselves as they smiled awkwardly to try and ease the tension that had been set by the question. But, in typical clueless gay fashion, they both realized at the same moment that their fumbling was actually having the opposite desired effect, and they both hastily shut themselves up once again. They stared at Glimmer anxiously, smiling weakly. Adora’s brow was beading with sweat, and Catra’s eyes seemed to look everywhere but at the other two.

Glimmer, on the opposite side of them, had to be sure that there wasn’t smoke coming ut of her ears from the short circuit she had experienced when they asked her the question at first. She turned red herself as she felt overheated, her heart racing in her chest until she was sure that it would break out through her ribs and roll onto the floor. The tiny wolf and the tiny lesbian that lived in her brain scrambled to put out fires, pick up the shattered pieces of her once functioning brain. 

Was this happening? Did they just ask her what she thinks they just asked her? This was the last thing she expected when Adora woke her up and dragged her down here. She might never speak coherently again. 

But that wasn’t an option. Adora and Catra needed an answer. Her eyes darted between the two as she squirmed anxiously, put on the spot to come up with the truth when she was struggling to remember the English language, or how o speak, or how to  _ breathe _ . She felt hot, overheated, like she was about to go supernova. Oh gods, think. 

“So?” Adora asked timidly. 

“Which one of us had it right?” Catra asked in equal shyness. 

_ Answer. Words. Breathing!  _ Glimmer’s brain hastily reassembled and she suddenly inhaled sharply. She folded her hands over her mouth and brought her knees up to her chest, closing in on herself. 

“ You’re sort of… both right? ”

“Uh, come again?” Adora said, straining to hear the weak sound that came out of the pink haired princess. Even Catra, with her fine senses, had to lean in to hear better. Glimmer was bright red.

“You’re. Both? Right?” She confessed nervously. 

A moment passed where nothing was said. Nobody moved. 

“Wait hang on.” Catra eventually said, standing upright again. “Glimmer, we already told you that we won’t be hurt or offended, whatever you choose. You can be honest, you don’t need to protect our feelings.”

Glimmer sighed and groaned at the same time as her feet hit the floor and she slumped over. 

Why. _ Why? _

“I am being honest!” She defended, sitting upright again. 

“What do you mean?” Adora asked. 

“Look, this has all been super hard for me, okay?” Glimmer explained, her brain now in working order enough that she could vent a few months of pent up frustrations and pining. She paced the floor around them, and they stood still as stalks watching in shock. “Ever since Adora showed up! And then Catra? Gyeuuuggh, it’s so confusing! You guys think its confusing for  _ you _ to figure out who I like? Welcome to the club, because this bitch doesn’t know either!” She animatedly pointed both thumbs at herself. “But no, no of course! Not only do I have an unrequited crush. That would be too simple! No, I have a crush on two  _ very different _ , amazing individual people? Two people so similar and yet so different that not even my stupid hormonal brain can decide! But wait,  _ there’s more! _ ” Her voice rose as she continued, pacing around the entire room, stopping only occasionally to make a point. “Not  _ only _ do I have two unfathomably deep crushes, no those two people are in a relationship!  _ With each other! _ It’s so confusing, all the time, being around you! You’re both so attractive and kind and smart that I’m being pulled in every direction, all while not being able to say or do anything!” She stopped only to inhale more air to continue. “You think this is confusing for you? I’m on a non stop pain train, baby!” She yelled, punching the air.

Glimmer turned around hesitantly to Adora and Catra again. They both seemed as she expected, ramrod stiff and straight where they stood, eyes blown huge in shock at the rant. Usually only Bow got to hear her rants, he was the one best equipped for Glimmer-related emergencies. These two were untrained in the delicate art of navigating Glimmer’s mood swings. 

Glimmer inhaled through her teeth, suddenly unsure. No way to un-ring that bell. Did she step too far?

“Uuuuuuuhhhh….” Adora, face red as a tomato, seemed to be catching back up to herself from the verbal whiplash. 

“Wait, hold up.” Catra shook her head in confusion. “Are you saying…?” She was so close. Glimmer couldn’t stand this any more. 

She grabbed Catra’s jaw and forced her to look at her. Glimmer’s face was determined, like it was whenever she was about to make an impulsive decision. 

“What I’m saying.” Glimmer said, then kissed Catra’s lips. She could feel the sharp bulge of her long fangs under her lips. 

She broke away only to set her sights on Adora, pulling her closer by the flannel she wore.

“Is that I love.” She captured Adora’s lips in a similar manner. They were so much softer than she expected, she almost fell into Adora. She pulled away abruptly once again. “ _ Both. Of. You. _ ” She concluded softly. 

“Whoa….” Adora whispered, perhaps to herself as she realized what just happened. Catra swallowed nervously. 

“I, uh…” It suddenly occurred to Glimmer that they might not feel the same way. Obviously Catra and Adora loved each other, she had no reason to believe that she could just walk in and be a part of that. Her brain started to catch up on the backlog of everything that had just happened while she was busy living in the current moment. 

“I’ll just… head out then.” Glimmer said softly, turning around. She made it halfway across the room when Adora called out to her.

“Glimmer, wait.” She stopped, but didn’t turn around fully. Adora hesitated to find the right words once again, but wanted to press forward. 

“You… really feel that way?” She asked softly. Glimmer turned her head to see Adora had reached out a hand, as though reaching out for her, when she stopped her. “You can really feel love, so strongly like that… for two people? Like… at the same time?” 

Glimmer sighed. She felt suddenly exhausted. 

“Yes, Adora.” Then a thought occurred to Glimmer. “Wait. Is everything monogamous in the Crimson Horde?” She turned around to fully face them. 

“Hm? Oh.” Adora rubbed her neck in thought. “Well sure things were kind of repetitive sometimes, but I don’t see how that’s relevant…”

Catra face palmed. 

“You’re thinking of  _ monotonous _ , dumbass.” She grumbled. Then, to Glimmer, “Is that, not how things work here?” She said weakly. Glimmer gulped. 

“In the pack.” She explained slowly. “People can choose to be in a relationship with more than one person.” She put delicately. “So long as everyone involved is in agreement. It’s not uncommon. After all, the whole pack kind of raises children together, it’s more… of a communal way of thinking.” 

The information sank in for a moment, and shockingly, Adora was the first one to respond. She laughed. 

“Ooooh!” She chuckled, one hand on her hip and the other running over her hair. She seemed relieved as she was connecting the dots. 

“A… Are you okay?”

Adora chuckled softly. 

“That’s such a relief. I felt like I was being a bad girlfriend for so long.” She thought out loud to herself. “Now I feel way less weird!” She smiled at Glimmer. 

“Huh?”

“The whole reason that we started having this little heart to heart,” Catra explained, suddenly appearing next to Glimmer. She really needed to get her a bell or something for when she moved around. “Is because we felt like something was missing, without you here. It just felt emptier than it should be. I think that what Adora is trying to say, is that we missed you.”

Adora came and took Glimmer’s hand in both of her own, tenderly. Her calloused hands were like a soothing sandpaper. 

“Glimmer, why didn’t you say something sooner?” Adora said softly. 

“Wait Adora,” Glimmer realized. “Are you saying that you. Feel the same way?”

Adora grinned and nodded energetically. 

“Of all the new things that you’ve taught me, I wish I had known about this one sooner.” Adora smiled. Her long teeth were on full display, but she looked like such a bashful dork. Glimmer looked over to Catra again. 

“I have to admit.” Catra said shakily. “I really didn’t want to lose either of you. In any way.” Relief appeared in the form of wetness around her eyes. “This is a pretty good compromise, all things considered. I didn’t want to get left behind again. Of course I would rather not choose between you two. You two are the best things that have ever happened in my life.”

“Do you mean that?” Glimmer asked, not getting misty eyed herself. 

“Of course.” Catra chuckled, resting a hand on her shoulder. “I just didn’t realize until now… but guys?” They waited for her to continue as she looked at them both, hand in hand in hand in hand. “I think I have a crush on  _ both _ of you.” 

Adora snorted a laugh at how corny Catra was being. She leaned over to kiss Catra, which was returned. When the broke apart, they both set their eyes on Glimmer. She could feel heat rushing all over her skin once again, as though she were about to transform. But different, like electricity. 

“I might also have a crush on both of you.” Adora said, just as cheesy. If it weren’t for the fact that Glimmer’s brain was still in scattered pieces, she would have short circuited again in disbelief that her wildest fantasy was coming true. She didn’t realize that she was crying until Adora looked concerned and wiped away at the tears on her cheeks. 

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes. Yeah.” Glimmer sniffled, wiping her own face of the tear marks. She laughed.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Catra asked gingerly. She was so unsure of her future, but it didn’t scare her. 

“We keep doing what we’ve been doing.” Glimmer said. “And we see where things go. Together.”

“No matter what?” Adora asked. 

“No matter what.” Glimmer agreed. With a smile. She sighed with exhaustion, leaning into her girls. “Wow. What a crazy day.” She joked. 

“We had better get some rest then.” Adora said. And before either of them realized what was happening, she scooped Catra up in one arm and Glimmer in the other, and was met with squeals of surprise and delight. It wasn’t even hard for her to lift the pair of them at the same time as she carried them to bed. Glimmer had to cover her face with her hand as she turned a bright red.

“ _ Hooooly shit I’m gay. _ ” She whispered to herself, but she was sure Catra still heard because she laughed. 

They all fell onto the bed and curled up comfortably next to each other. Catra wouldn’t sleep, but she would let the other two rest. 

“This feels much better.” Adora murmured sleepily as she quickly dozed off. Catra and Glimmer smiled. They couldn’t agree more. This felt right. 

Adora was, finally, able to sleep peacefully, surrounded by her girls. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you didn't read the above: I haven't posted in a while because my mother passed away. Updates will be less frequent, but they will come. I refuse to abandon a work part way through. Wanted to publish this before my leave of absence ends and I have to go back to work tomorrow. 
> 
> Artofkace.tumblr, who drew amazing stuff for this AU, has moved over to a new blog called kaereth.tumblr.com. Their old art from before the new blog is still there on the old blog, but please do check out their new blog for more great art. 
> 
> Comments water my crops and feed my family please don't let my family starve.


	7. Eclipse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, things are good! :D Then they are not... :(

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To apologize for the long long wait, I give you: a long long chapter!  
> Warning for descriptions of pain and violence at the end.

It was raining out, which only lent itself to hinder any movement through the woods. A dark night made even darker by the storm clouds. It would have been next to impossible to go anywhere in these types of conditions much less in any kind of hurry, but someone did. 

The mud slowed her down, in some places up to her knees. But she continued on with burning in her every muscle, desperation driving her on in panic to escape her pursuer. Her heart raced in her chest until it practically vibrated with frenzied terror, probably giving her away to her chaser. But this chase was about more than the simple need for blood, such a desire even at its worst could drive such desperately violent actions.

The vampires were right on her. She had to get to Bright Moon. 

She needed to tell them what she knew. Even if it cost her her life. 

Her lungs burned with the effort of her running in the downpour through the thicket of branches and leaves. But she couldn’t stop to catch her breath, or else--

A full grown tree hurled through the air from behind her and landed in front of her. When it bounced off the forest floor briefly, the ground shook and thundered louder than the sky before settling in a few dozen feet to the side. Only one being strong enough to do that. Someone was trying to block her off, to crush her, to slow her down. She couldn’t stop running, she had to get far away from them.

Or else it  _ might _ cost her her life. 

She didn’t know how many were still on her tail, but the one that was definitely there was only getting angrier. She had to hurry, before it was too late. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  
  
  


Adora inhaled the smells of a crisp, cool night at Bright Moon. She wore a proud smile, being able to hear the festivities continue inside. It was nearly midnight, and the moon was bright even though it wasn’t full. It made her feel more refreshed than a full night after a hearty meal, to feel the moon beams hitting her skin and see it light up the forest all around the castle as the greens of summer turned to vibrant oranges of fall. 

Inside, she could hear the delight of laughter, the boom of voices of her friends telling tales and teasing each other. Her pack was celebrating their success. Ever since they started working together with Catra and Adora, they hadn’t had any fatal vampire incidents in any of the towns in their territory. The attacks were fewer and less powerful in number, not a soul had been drained or kidnapped. The people of their territory were safe, and celebrated the pack. They brought gifts to show their gratitude, and hailed them as heroes. So tonight, they drank freely and ate like kings, they danced and played music and rejoiced as though their war with the vampires had already been won. 

It wasn’t just Catra’s intelligence that had helped them. Adora had a big part too. It was originally her idea that the werewolves who would be in the field fighting more could spar with Catra and Adora, to learn how to face a vampire better. The One on One training was always observed by Adora, and she helped guide each member of the pack learn how to fight smarter. Even if Catra complained about so much sparring, she was proud to help and put all her Horde training to good use here. And tonight was the proof that it had been paying off. 

Few vampires remained that still had the guts to dare and step into their territory. The people in the various villages over their expansive wilderness felt safe and secure, and they thrived with bountiful harvest, which they of course shared with the pack. 

Adora herself was growing stronger too. After living with the pack for a few months, she was still changing. Her body grew with her growing strength, her senses were keen and sharp. 

But, it was still overwhelming for her at times, to have her senses be so acutely aware of everything when she was in a celebration amongst werewolves. They were a loud and rowdy bunch by nature, she had learned, and any compliments went right to their heads. She had fun with them, but soon it was too hot and loud and bright in the glass castle, and she needed a breather. 

The night air did wonders for her. Cleared her head from all the commotion. No matter how much she learned, or how strong she became since becoming a werewolf, she might never fully grasp these senses she was gifted with. Glimmer said that was normal. Both she and Catra helped her with it sometimes, when it felt like too much. They both understood what it was like. 

“Adora!” A familiar voice behind her said happily. Adora was even happier to see her when she turned around. Across the balcony, standing in the bright doorway, was a loveable mess of pink. 

“Were you getting overwhelmed again?”

Adora leaned back against the railing and blushed with a smile, shocked that her girlfriend could know her so well and instantly know what was going on in her head. 

_ Her girlfriend _ . The thought still tickled her ribs with a feather when she thought about it, even after all the time that they had spent together. Not only did a girl like her, but TWO did! She never could have imagined before being so happy. Ever since their confession, things had been going great between the three of them. There were a few bumps in the road as they had to learn to navigate this new lifestyle, this new relationship that they all shared, but overall they were able to figure things out and keep together stronger. Catra was confident and callous to everyone else, but shy and anxious about messing up whenever it was just the three of them. Glimmer leaned fully into it right away, always close to their side and openly affectionate to ease their worries. Then Adora was of course, still in shock that she had ever gotten so lucky in the first place. 

“Yeah. But it’s a nice night.” Adora shrugged. She could feel her face getting warm as Glimmer approached, leaving the party behind to join her girlfriend in the cool air of the balcony. She leaned on the railing and looked out over the expanse of forest she called home with a fond look in her eye. 

Adora couldn’t help but stare. Glimmer was especially beautiful tonight, the way her cheeks were rosy from the drink, her hair disheveled from a rowdy time with their friends. The pink hues of her hair blended into purple the same way that her coat held two tones for her different furs. It swept over her eyes, lightly bouncing in the gentle breeze that brought with it the smell of bonfires and rain to come soon, only to freeze into morning frost.

Glimmer was who the pack and the towns owed their success to the most. She was a fierce fighter once her head was clear, and an even fiercer friend. She now regularly donated blood to Catra, and convinced the others in the pack that when it was supervised and consensual with safe and sanitary practices in place, it was not as gruesome as they thought. Of course, between Adora and Glimmer, Catra rarely ever needed to use other sources. She said it felt safer with the two of them after a while, she knew them better and they knew her and it was more intimate. 

That, and the fact that she preferred the taste of them better. She wouldn’t tell anybody else but the two of them, worried about how it might sound. Perhaps after some weeks of getting used to their scent and flavor, their blood had grown on her to be her favorite by association. She claimed that Glimmer was especially sweet like a dessert. 

“It is a nice night.” Glimmer hummed in agreement. She looked up at Adora and caught her red-handed in the act of staring in admiration of the Princess. It took a moment for Adora to notice, and look away rubbing her neck bashfully. 

“Sorry, it’s just, you look really nice and--”

“Even after two months, you're still smitten.” Glimmer rolled her eyes, teasing her girlfriend. 

“I know, I know, sorry,” Adora continued to babble in embarrassment, rubbing her face to avoid the judging look she was getting. 

“Well, I didn’t say that it was a bad thing.” Glimmer said, standing upright and closer to Adora, forcing her to make eye contact once again. They both smiled at each other, despite the height difference. 

“I like to think I can keep you on your toes.” Glimmer continued half-joking. She took Adora’s hands in hers. 

“Hmm. You mean like you, whenever you have to lean up for a kiss?” Adora teased back. She could tell that Glimmer was going to try and kiss her again, she could generally tell when she wanted a peck. She would lean up tall against them, pressing their bodies closer together. Glimmer rolled her eyes in fake annoyance at the return tease. 

“Oh come on! It isn’t my fault you’re so tall!” She whined. 

"Well it's not my fault you're so short." Adora chuckled. 

“Are you going to lean down or what?” Glimmer demanded challengingly. Adora rolled her eyes and leaned down to kiss Glimmer. Their lips moved together briefly, a soft sigh of comfort between them passing before they parted. 

The wind picked up slightly, raising goosebumps on their arms as it tossed their hair. 

“There you two are! Hey, I need one of you two to drink all of this.”

Glimmer and Adora looked up to find Catra had found them. She had two full glass bottles in each hand, and didn’t seem to care what she was interrupting. That, or she knew exactly what she had interrupted and was pleased with herself for annoying them. 

She had been more happy and acting like herself in the past two months than perhaps she had ever been in her life. Once they were finally able to figure out where their relationship stood and all their feelings, she found she had next to nothing to be anxious or stressed about. Here, there was no Shadow Weaver breathing down her neck about her next inevitable beating. There was no need to prove herself worthy since she was already turned into a vampire. She had willing volunteers to supply her steady need of blood, and she hadn’t known any hunger. Even the fights they engaged in with vampires from the Horde were getting easier now that they were not coming in such large raiding parties anymore. 

It scared Catra at first. She didn’t know who she was if she was safe. Everything she ever did, she did out of fear and self preservation. She lashed out instead of being vulnerable, hurt people before they could hurt her. Being raised by cruel tyrants who only kept her around as a source of food to themselves would do that to a person. 

But change was good, it turned out. Glimmer and Adora were both patient even when she became volatile. They stuck around through the storm of her metamorphosis into the healthy person she was today. 

Of course, she would still complain about the constant training that Adora had put them through. Adora had to make sure that every werewolf, regardless of their position or role, was equipped to fight, and especially fighting vampires. She became the personal trainer of the pack. Unfortunately, that included Catra now too. She was a part of the pack, in every way, and that meant training with them. Though, more often, being used to demonstrate to every wolf in the castle how to fight a vampire since she was the only vampire around who would pull her punches. 

Even if it was hard to argue with the results, Having the local towns pitch in parts of their harvest just to surprise the pack and thank them for their protection was a good bonus. Even if she couldn’t eat or drink, she decided that she liked the idea of parties. If only she had ever gotten to attend one when she was still slightly more alive. 

“Excuse me?” Glimmer said. 

“Why?” Adora asked at the same time. 

“I can’t drink!” Catra complained, waving the two full bottles around. “But it sounds really weird! So I was thinking we could do an experiment: one of you drinks  _ a ton _ of this stuff, then I drink your blood. Then maybe it’ll work! It’ll get straight into my system through your blood, no need to ingest it myself--”

“Catra, I don’t think that’s how it works.” Adora said, trying to gently remove the bottle from her grasp. Glimmer just laughed at the absurd idea. 

“Oh come on, between the three of us, which has the most experience in vampirism?” Catra challenged, raising a defiant eyebrow. Adora could only roll her eyes. 

“Well it can’t be that different from drinking blood, right?” Glimmer tried to help, through the amusement of it all. “Maybe you just can’t process solids. Or wait, have you even tried any solids since you became a vampire? For all you know, you could.”

“Tried it ages ago, just made me throw up.” Catra’s shoulders hunched up remembering the icky feeling. “And just now, on this. Also did not work.” She added, holding up the bottle. 

“Wait, if you knew it made you sick why did you drink tonight?” Adora’s voice rose with incredulous laughter, but was still on the verge of berating her poor girlfriend. 

“I was hoping it would be different!” Catra defended. “I don’t know!”

“You know what? I’ll take you up on that bet.” Glimmer said, snatching the bottle for herself. 

“Glimmer, no!” Adora pretended to try and wrangle the alcohol out of her hands, to which she resisted. 

“It’s for science!” Glimmer whined, holding her prize close to her chest while Adora tackled from behind, trying to maneuver it within reach as she bent over the smaller woman. 

“Your mom is going to kill you!” Adora protested. “Or us, if you die from alcohol poisoning!” 

“Let her do it, Adora! Come on, for me!” Catra pretended to whine in their silly little fight. The three of them laughed at the absurdity of it all. 

Even if Angella had fully welcomed Adora and Catra as part of her pack, even if she acted somewhat motherly towards them in order to get them to take better care of themselves, even if she was perfectly happy with their relationship that had started between the three of them, Adora would still always view the Queen as her superior. And all superiors, no matter how welcoming, should be respected and not challenged. Letting Glimmer drink even a few sips tonight had already been an small miracle, and Adora did not want to incur her wrath over something so silly and stupid. 

It didn’t take long for the entire pack to know that the three of them were dating, all crushing hard on each other. Bow was no help in that when it came to keeping secrets. The Queen, upon learning, merely rolled her eyes at the insatiable gayness of her very gay daughter. She had wished that one of them, preferable Glimmer herself, had told her about the development rather than one of the Rooks who kept careful watch on Glimmer, but other than that she had no reason to complain. They were suitable companions: strong and capable, able to defend the pack and take care of each other. Once she got over the disappointment of how she had found out, she was actually quite happy for them. Of course, Adora could still never forget that quiet disapproval in her squint whenever she was in the room, a small frown just centimeters away from her lips as she tried to stay diplomatically neutral. 

Certain connotations are impossible to grow past, no matter how much evidence there is to the contrary. And to Adora, a superior always held power over her that made her nervous. Angella could have thrown Adora out of the pack at any moment, or worse. Not that she would, not after how much time Adora had spent there proving herself to them, not with how fond of her hard working spirit the Queen had come to enjoy. But still, she wanted the Queen to know that Adora respected her as an authority figure. Which, at times, was more than could be said of the other two. Which was only part of the reason that they were in this silly situation to begin with. 

They play-fought a moment longer, Catra and Glimmer ganging up on Adora. Despite the numbers, it was a mostly even game with the height and weight advantage that Adora had on each of them. 

Unfortunately, it couldn’t have lasted much longer. After a moment of their laughter, they became aware of cold droplets of water hitting them. At first it was fine if they ignored it, but the sky opened up even more until it was guaranteed to downpour. They all dashed inside and shut the windows, ready to rejoin the party inside rather than get drenched outside. The wind slowly picked up, but they could hardly hear it over the celebration amongst their fellow clansmen. 

It felt strange, how far they had come from where they all were a year ago. Even the mightiest werewolf pack in Etheria couldn’t have dared to hope for an era where the vampires never attacked, but here they were. The war wasn’t won, they knew that. Lord Hordak was still at large, ruling over his dark circle of followers in the shadows. But for now, people felt safe. The harvest was good, the pack had accepted the strange new recruits, and it was a deserved break from all their hard work to get here. 

The halls echoed the sound of delight and merriment until the sun began to rise. Catra was careful to keep watch of the time, given that she was both the most vulnerable person to the effect of the sun compared to werewolves, and that she was like a designated driver by being unable to become inebriated. By morning, the ruckus had died down into calmer celebrations. Stories told around the fire pits rather than sparring and dancing. 

Catra had to help carry Adora to bed, despite her protestations that she was totally awake and not sleepy at  _ all _ . She carried Adora over her shoulder, fireman style with little dignity, as Adora sleepily patted Catra’s calves in resistance. Glimmer too indulged in jaw-popping yawns as they all went off to their shared room, what was once Adora’s room alone that was now known to be for all three of them. 

Now that things were dying down and the morning was coming, they were able to notice more how bad the storm outside had truly gotten. Leaves and sticks covered every surface of the ground outside that they could see, and probably peppered the glass ceilings. The rain still came down hard enough to make a soothing rhythm against the windows, enough to lull the two werewolves to a deep slumber while their vampiric love watched over them as always. Even though she was far past needing an escort from either of them, she could have easily left to do other things, she still enjoyed getting to spend this quiet time with them. She was protective even here where they were safe, and enjoyed seeing them so peaceful when their day-to-day lives were hectic and sometimes dangerous. In a way, it restored her energy in a way that sleep could not. 

They had the windows all carefully boarded up as soon as Catra came to Bright Moon, so she had no idea what time it was. Probably near dawn, when the stars disappear but the sky still retains its night-like darkness. They rested content in the knowledge that their hearts were full.

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


The next day started slowly. Normally they would have been woken up sooner, but it seemed that everyone was tired from the night of fun, and they rose later than usual. Well, Glimmer rose later. Catra didn’t sleep and Adora was always up first thing to get a head start on the day. It was hard for her to shake that military routine she was raised with, and she went to start her day as though it were any other. She let Catra know to find her on the front lawn and left with a soft kiss, and one on the top of Glimmer’s head as she slept.

Catra, not being one to stick to harsh routines that she always hated when growing up, elected as she usually did and stayed in bed until Glimmer woke up. She couldn’t imagine the headache that she must have woken up with, nor did she envy it, but she sympathized and was able to help her get some water before they both were ready to start the day. 

They met up with Bow and found Adora right where she promised, training in the front entrance lawn. Glimmer was still groggy, simply too tired to shapeshift for any training yet, despite it being close to the middle of the night. Everyone here preferred a nocturnal lifestyle, it was still between breakfast and lunch as the rest of the pack slowly woke up and started to go about their duties. 

It seemed as though Adora had made herself busy with nobody to train with, and was clearing all the branches and sticks from the large open space and tossing them into the woods, all while transformed into her smallest and most intelligent wolf form. Despite it being the smallest of her wolf forms to choose from, she was still large and imposing, all tight muscles concealed beneath golden fur. 

Her paws were muddy from walking back and forth across the field so much, and the grass was still wet from the downpour they had received yesterday. By now, Adora had already cleared all the largest branches by dragging them in her mouth to the edge of the woods, and now only chased after the smaller segments, trying to fit as many as she could in her mouth at once to save trips and fumbling in doing so. 

She saw her girlfriends approaching from a mile away, and her ears lifted happily. It seemed as though Bow had joined them sometime during their breakfast, and trotted alongside them in his smallest form as well. The closer they got, the more her tail wagged with excitement. She dropped her elbows to the ground, showing she was excited and ready to play, not seeming to understand why they might dread the intense daily training she always had in store for them.

They walked down the hill from the castle, groggy but happy to see Adora so transparently happy to see them. 

“Okay, sit girl.” Catra teased with a hand motion pointing towards the ground. “Down, Adora.”

“Come on, Catra. I'm not a dog!” Adora whined in a husky voice. It sounded just like her, but more canine, more whistling in her whining tones and more throaty in sound. 

“Well  _ I’m _ going to sit.” Glimmer yawned. “But not because you told me to. Just cause it’s too early to fight.”

“You aren’t even going to shift?” Bow asked. “The grass is all wet.”

Glimmer hesitated, then curled her nose in the disgust that he was right. She  _ would _ have to spend some energy shifting just to sit and relax, given that wet grass wouldn’t bother her wolf form, but would stain the seat of her pants otherwise. She glared at Bow as though to blame him for this very fact before she turned around and rolled her shoulders. She was shifted into her larger quadrupedal form in the time it took her to simply inhale and exhale. She was still a smaller werewolf, so her larger form was only about the same size as Bow and Adora in their smaller forms. She grumbled her disagreement with the weather before settling down to observe sleepily, wishing her headache away. 

“Actually, I was thinking we could run the perimeter a bit, do some patrol?” Adora said nervously. She laid down near Glimmer’s head to give her muzzle a loving lick, easily anticipating the annoyed groan that escaped her. The moonlight illuminated her shining eyes and Glimmer couldn’t refuse. 

“Fiiiine.” 

They all made their way further out into the woods, away from the castle. Bow led the patrol, as Scout of the pack.

“Great.” Catra grumbled. “You realize how this looks, right? I’m basically just a person taking my three dogs for a walk.”

“Oh come on Catra.” Bow encouraged her. He leapt up onto a fallen log proudly, his dark fur looking even richer in the dark night tones. “It’s not like anybody will be around to see you, that isn’t already a member of the pack anyway.” He pointed out. 

“'Taking us for a walk', _please_!” Glimmer smiled and rolled her eyes at the idea. “We are strong, independent apex predators who could take you down, thank you very much. What’s next, you’re going to pick up our poo like we’re your pet?”

“Keep that up and I’ll put you on a leash.” Catra pointed at Glimmer with narrowed eyes. 

They were a fast group in the woods with all their supernatural strength, despite how much the storm had brought down branches to slow them down. They were hardly a few minutes into their patrol when they found something. 

They were spread out across the landscape, all still within visibility and ear shot of each other as they trekked the rugged terrain. The chit chatted, about this and that. 

Suddenly, Adora stopped and became alert. She pointed her ears forward, searching as her eyes knit in concern. The others noticed her sudden change, and stopped walking to quietly wait for her to announce what she had detected, or waiting for whatever that was to make itself known to them as well. 

“Do you smell that?” Adora whispered, not looking away from the dense undergrowth. “It’s like… the Crimson Horde smell. But not exactly vampire.” She raised her nose to the air and sniffed harder, trying to locate the smell. 

Catra scanned the dark forest briefly. Then, she leapt upwards with more of her supernatural strength into the canopy of the trees, latching onto a pine trunk that allowed her to survey more of the forest. The tree swayed under the sudden weight as she scanned the steep hills covered in dense forest. 

She heard before she could see. A large movement, too clumsy to be an animal, straight ahead of them. Labored breathing. Frantic heartbeat. 

Catra stepped forward off the branch she was on to fall back down to the forest floor. 

“There’s someone straight ahead. Big. But I don’t think it’s an ambush. They’re scared.” She reported in a cautiously quiet tone. 

“I smell them now too.” Glimmer confirmed, having walked forward a few more steps while Catra was up in the trees. “Bow, go scout ahead while we surround them.” She ordered. Bow nodded and went swiftly off, trying to make as little sound as possible.

In her mind, Glimmer was reminded of when she and Bow first found Adora in the woods. With the stink of the Horde on her, but not smelling like she herself was a vampire, just lived with them. Hopefully this new person wasn’t a threat, but she had to use the same precaution she once did. With the Horde going quiet, it felt like it was only a matter of time before their luck ran out. 

The closer they got, the more they could tell about this mysterious intruder. It was a woman, large and tall, and she was hurt. The smell of panicked sweat covered her and she was weakened enough that she couldn’t stand as she limped through the mud. 

It wasn’t long before they had a visual confirmation. Catra pulled aside a branch to see the intruder, and her eyes became as wide as saucers.

“Scorpia?” She stepped forward and made her presence known, alarming Scorpia and letting the others know that the ambush was off. “What are you doing here?” She demanded incredulously as she pulled down her hood and let her hair out. 

Scorpia was a sight worse for wear. She was totally caked in dried mud, leaving a crusty layer of dirt over her. She was covered in cuts and bruises, some from trees and others from talons. She scrambled backwards in fear at first, then her eyes lit up with recognition. 

“Cat, is that you? Is this where you’ve been this whole time?”

“Guys you can come out now, she isn’t dangerous.” Catra called out to the forest around them. She could hear Scorpia’s heart bouncing in fear as more werewolves appeared out of nowhere. They still kept their ears pulled back threateningly as they stepped closer. Glimmer growled from her side, revealing her pointed teeth ready to gnash her bones. Scorpia flinched away in fear. 

“Okay. Guys, this is Scorpia.” Catra introduced in a monotone voice. “Scorpia, this is the Bright Moon pack. Or at least a fraction of it. What are you doing here?”

“You joined the Bright Moon pack?” Scorpia gasped. “We all thought you had died! Going so close to their territory on a full moon was a suicide mission!”

Bow approached Scorpia first, sniffing her all over as she sat there nervously, unsure of how to push him away. 

“You’re hurt.” He declared when he examined her legs more closely. She winced in pain as he pressed his nose against her knee. “Wait…” He once again inhaled harder, closing his eyes to focus on her mysterious scent. “Are you… a werewolf? From the Horde?” He asked incredulously. 

“That’s impossible!” Glimmer interjected. 

“Holy shit, I’m sorry, but what the heck,” Scorpia babbled. “You can talk? Oh stars, you really are werewolves. Oh jeez.” She ran a hand through her messy hair with worry. 

“Hang on, that still doesn’t answer why you’re here!” Catra yelled over their confusion to settle them all.  _ Stars I am surrounded by dumb canines. _ She thought to herself. “Does the Horde know where you are? Did they send you?”

Scorpia’s face suddenly shifted, as though she had remembered something incredibly important. 

“No, I was escaping them! I had to come to Bright Moon to warn you!” She said urgently. “I barely made it out. I need to warn the leader of the pack.”

“It’s up to you Glimmer.” Adora said to their highest ranking leader in their little group. “Should we take her back to Bright Moon?”

“If you have an important warning for the pack, we need to hear it. Let’s take her back and get her patched up.” Glimmer growled commandingly. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Scorpia was brought into Bright Moon with the help of the Best Friend Squad. Before they were even at the gates, they could smell a new person coming, and a hubbub started up as the pack became more active with her arrival. Scorpia gawked with her mouth wide open at the sight of the castle on top of the hill. It didn’t last long before Rooks and Guards of the grounds came forward to help apprehend the newcomer. 

It wasn’t long before she was kneeling on the ground before the Queen of the pack, with most of the rest of them present. The best friend squad stayed with Scorpia the whole time until she was ready to tell the Queen what she knew. 

“What are you doing in my territory.” Angella said threateningly. 

“I escaped the Crimson Horde.” Scorpia said honestly, trying to stay calm. “There were others too. Lonnie and Kyle and Rogelio, they’re human. But we had to split up. I don’t know if they made it. I came to warn you about what happened in the Horde..”

“Warn us?”

“Things in the Horde have gone bad. Very very very bad.” 

“How bad?” 

“Shadow Weaver has overthrown Hordak.” Scorpia declared. Catra felt a chill run up her spine just hearing the name of the person who tormented her, the person she thought she would never have to deal with again. Adora immediately sensed Catra’s discomfort, and leaned up against her to ground her. Glimmer was on the same page as her mother, already worrying about what this meant, specifically for her pack. 

“There was a violent coup.” Scorpia continued to explain. “She was starting to go mad. Eventually she broke and went crazy with power, and she took Hordak’s throne. She’s the leader of the vampires now. Nobody knows what she’s going to do next, but she took out the oldest living vampire that exists, so it can’t be good.”

Murmurs of shock and speculation spread throughout the gathered crowd of werewolves. Most were not familiar with the name Shadow Weaver. 

“Why did you flee to tell us this? We are rivals in this war.” Angella pointed out. Scorpia grimaced uncomfortably. 

“She ordered my death. Along with any other members of the ranks that weren’t human for feeding, or vampires. She was worried that my blood would spell betrayal to her. She’s been paranoid about betrayal ever since Adora defected, then she lost Catra. That’s why she was so worried about Hordak, she was terrified of losing what little control she had. Lonnie and Kyle and Rogelio, they helped sneak me out right as the order was given. We all ran but we got separated… They only stopped chasing me when the sun came up. We had to come warn you. That Shadow Weaver is in charge now, and she’s dangerous and unpredictable. It’s likely that she’ll make a move, we just don’t know what or when or how.”

Angella paced slowly in front of Scorpia, her hands crossed over her mouth as she processed the information. Adora’s heart dropped thinking that her simple action could have caused all of this trouble and escalated a war. Her ears bent down in shame, even though she knew she made the right choice. Around them, the guards and the pack whispered speculatively. 

“ _Is Hordak even still alive?”_

_ “She wouldn’t come here and attack, would she?” _

_ “How can we trust her if she was from the Horde?” _

_ “What if they follow her straight here?” _

Glimmer noticed the way her pack was getting antsy and agitated at this disturbing news. Even her own mother, their Queen, was clearly concerned about it. 

“Scorpia, you’re a werewolf, right?” She suddenly asked, causing a hush to fall over the assembled pack as they listened again in surprised curiosity. Even Scorpia seemed startled by the off-topic question. 

“Well, technically yes.” She said nervously. “The Horde raised me since I was a baby. Shadow Weaver used to use some sort of magic and science potion thingy to make it so I never transformed though. So in _experience_ … not really, no.”

Glimmer nodded. 

“You’re hurt. We’ll get you fixed up. Then we can decide if you want to stay here and learn how to be a werewolf. If you want to, that is. But you have to swear your loyalty to us and cut off any ties you once had with the Crimson Horde.”

“Glimmer!” Her mother chastised behind her. “You don’t make those decisions!” whispered as loud as she could to scold her daughter for speaking too soon.

“Your Majesty,” Catra spoke up. “I knew Scorpia before I defected. She was on my team, before I showed up here. I can vouch for her character.” She stepped forward and helped Scorpia to her feet shakily. “The Horde did her family wrong, but she isn’t accountable for that. She’s loyal and caring.” She explained. Then, looking to Scorpia apologetically, she continued, more quietly. “I’m sorry that I abandoned you back there. And everything else. I shouldn’t have treated you that way.”

“Wow, thanks Cat.” She said simply with a genuine smile. 

“Very well then.” The Queen sighed in resignation. “You can stay for now. I’m interested to see if you have any more valuable information about the Horde. I can’t kick you out when you’re injured, much less on the run from our enemy.”

“Your Majesty!” Another member of the pack barged into the room, fresh back from their own border patrol. “We discovered three humans who escaped the Horde on our territory!” She announced. Angella rolled her eyes and groaned. “They were found separately, and heading towards the castle, ma’am.”

“Honestly, am I running a hotel here?” She complained. “We only have so many rooms, people!”

She continued to grumble about how her daughter let  _ one harmless human _ into their home, and suddenly that girl brings in her old flame, and then that old flame brings in another defector, and that defector brings in a whole swarm of refugees, blah blah blah. Nevertheless, she ordered that they all get examined by a medic, and all be roomed together with one guard to supervise them.

“Now for the rest of you spectators!” She ordered the room of assembled werewolves that remained. “I want you to double the amount of people on each patrol, and double the frequency of patrols. I need a Scout to alert the villages in our territory about the change so that they can prepare for attacks if necessary. I want two Hunters in each town in twelve hour rotations for their protection, for all three towns. We need to be prepared for anything!”

With the orders given, the pack scrambled to their assignments from the Alpha, determined to do their best to protect their family. 

Later, when it was just the four of the best friend squad in Adora’s room towards the end of their day, they would reflect on what this really meant. 

“I never even knew that there was a werewolf in the Horde.” Adora thought out loud, thinking back to what Scorpia had said. 

“Me neither. Until Shadow Weaver made her my babysitter.” Catra explained. “Hordak basically forced her to turn me… she wasn’t happy about that. Apparently she thought I needed to be kept in line just in case I turned on her or something.”

“You guys have barely ever talked about this Shadow Weaver person….” Bow spoke up a little hesitantly. “As far as I know, it seems like she was your commander. But I take it that there's more there between you guys.”

It was obvious from the change in atmosphere when her name was first mentioned that Shadow Weaver was a sore subject full of dread. Catra was almost happy that she couldn’t sleep because if she could, she was certain that she would have nightmares about their torment in the Horde all over again. Even Glimmer didn’t know everything, though she knew more than Bow did. 

“Should we be worried about her being in charge of the Crimson Horde?” Glimmer asked. “I know that she’s an evil vampire, and she was cruel to you guys. But do you really think she’ll be able to escalate this war as much as everyone says, more than Hordak ever could? She can’t be more powerful than Hordak, right? He’s like a thousand years old.”

“Well, she’s old too. Hundreds of years.” Adora clarified. She was pacing and fidgeting her fingers nervously. “Nobody really has an exact count on either of them.. Not many people willing to risk their lives to ask.”

“Still, Hordak has ruled over the Horde with an iron fist for generations.” Catra thought out loud. “If she was paranoid and strong enough to take him down… I don’t want to know what that means for the war. Before I would have doubted but now… she could level the whole territory if she wanted to.”

Glimmer shivered at the potential thought of losing so much to the vampires. He home, her people, everything they had worked so hard to build here where they were safe. Bow tried to comfort her with a hand on her arm, which she gave him a thankful look for. They had known each other for so long that it was almost like they had their own secret language. 

“For now, all we can do is what we have been doing:” Adora explained firmly, trying to pull the group together. “Keep protecting the people that we can, patrol and guard our perimeter. Keep an eye out for any trouble. It could be soon, or it could be weeks from now that she even makes a move.”

The days continued at a stricter pace than usual. There was less time for training with all the patrols that were out. Scorpia and the humans were fine guests, careful not to upset their gracious host, as they healed together from the harrowing escape from the Horde. Catra and Adora tried to avoid them, not wanting to open up old wounds about their defection or even their time in the Horde. 

Bow spent plenty of time with them, especially Scorpia. She was struggling with withdrawal from the potions that kept her from transforming her whole life, and it took a serious toll on her health and mentality. Bow was there to guide her through being a werewolf, even if she couldn’t shapeshift quite yet. The trio of humans also tried to help her through it, having known Scorpia the longest and being the closest with her. 

The pack learned little from the group that they didn’t already know, with the notable exception of the coup that had taken place. Everything else they were able to understand through Adora and Catra already. But the alpha allowed them to stay, and made sure that they were well fed and cared for. 

It was about a week at first where the initial anxieties were starting to calm down. Maybe Shadow Weaver wouldn’t do anything drastic right away. The pack began to let out the breath they had held in fear when they first heard the news, and continued doing their best to be prepared for any kind of attack. Seven days of calm passed over the valley. No attacks, no kidnappings, everything seemed fine. 

That didn’t mean that they were going to let their guard down, though. 

Nighttime was busy for them, and the day meant rest. On this night, the sky was clear and the air was cold. Fall had suddenly decided to pounce on the world, and temperatures plummeted. The earth was carpeted in fallen leaves so densely that it was impossible to move through the forest without crunching them. It was only a matter of time before they got enough precipitation to constitute a good snowfall. Glimmer couldn’t wait to show Adora and Catra snow for the first time. She could already imagine the childlike wonder Adora would have and the curious but still distasteful look Catra would wear. The Horde rarely let their trainees outside, especially when the weather got cold. 

Until such a time when it could really snow, they cut through the crisp air on dry leaves, enjoying the colors of fall while it lasted. 

Glimmer and Catra walked through the woods near midnight. Another patrol they were on, along with a handful of other wolves from the pack. Renee was always sure to be especially protective of Glimmer when she was out of the castle grounds, never really coming around to trusting Catra. Nevertheless, the pack of them all moved together from one village to the next. Once there, they would relieve two Hunters from watch duty and replace them with two from their group as they did a security sweep of the town for any traces of vampires. 

“We’re running late.” Catra pointed out, checking the position of the moon over the canopy. “Did we have to bring such a large group?”

“Those were the Alpha’s orders.” Renee, the rook tasked with protecting the royal family, reminded her harshly. Catra stuck out her tongue at her. 

“It’s better to be more cautious.” Glimmer said apologetically to her girlfriend, trying to be gentler. “Better to be too thorough than not thorough enough.”

She trotted alongside Catra, furry and bipedal, the only form that she was ever taller than Catra in. Catra had come to love the way that Glimmer’s two-toned fur was longer, softer, and fluffier than any of the other wolves, like a blanket of down rather than a coarse carpet. But when they were out on watch with the others, she was careful to remain less clingy and more nihilistic, so that the pack would take her seriously. 

“Whatever.” Catra shrugged, looking around at the tree trunks that surrounded them with little interest. “I was just hoping to get back to camp before Adora’s team did.” She grumbled. 

She had made a bet to race Adora back for their midnight chores. They left at the same time, Catra and Glimmer for the towns, and Adora to check the perimeter with her search team. Bow remained behind at the castle, resting between his two daily patrols. These days, it seemed like there was never a moment where half the pack or more was at the castle at once, everyone was always moving. 

She could have won the bet, but the villagers just kept talking endlessly. They were scared of every movement, suspicious of any family members that didn’t return home exactly on time. And all of them wanted a hound guarding their front door. 

They were in between the first and second village on their trek, and Catra was sure that Adora’s team would win. Soon she could see the lights of the town ahead through the forest, and hoped that this wouldn’t take as long as the last one. 

Arriving at the village, she could hear every heartbeat around her. Most were resting for the night. This place was more agricultural than the last place they had been to, with less buildings and more fields. There were few people still out, but those that did nodded their thanks to the pack in recognition. 

Glimmer pointed her nose upwards towards the sky, and howled out a signal for the operatives that were already in the field. The song floated on the cold air loud and clear as a bell, echoing on the distant hills and cliffs. Her breath became visible vapor as she howled out, a few micro droplets freezing on the tips of her whiskers. 

At the conclusion, she pointed her ears forward to hear the response. Soon, two voices obediently answered the call with howls of their own. They sounded close by, probably nearer to the center of town in anticipation of their shift end rather than at the border. The two distinct voices carried to them and Glimmer with the other werewolves listened intently. Catra still wasn’t sure how translating wolf speak really worked, but to her it sounded like they were on their way towards where their little landing party was. 

They walked to the center of town, where there was a large fire pit and only a few town elders still out at this dark hour. The coals twinkled and shimmered, and a hefty man threw on some logs to keep it going until morning. They waited for their comrades, and what Catra assumed to be the town leader approached them. 

“Has there been any news?” The old woman asked. She had long silver hair, and walked with a tall staff, wearing flowing robes accessorized with bits of glass and pretty stones. “Any sightings?”

“So far it’s still all quiet.” Glimmer calmly assured her in her most diplomatic tone. She sat down on the ground but still was taller than the woman. 

“It’s been seven days since you told us to look out for anything. We still don’t know what we’re even looking for.” The woman said with uncertainty. “Is it something to do with the…” She looked at Catra at the side of her eye, and whispered in a more cautious tone to Glimmer. “ _ Vampires? _ ” She said fearfully. 

Catra scoffed. It wasn’t like whispering would mean she couldn’t hear what she was saying. She bristled slightly at the distrusting look she got, but pretended not to hear, and kicked a pebble into the fire pit. 

“Ma’am, I don’t want you to think that Catra is any threat.” Glimmer boldly spoke, shocking Catra. She turned back around towards the conversation. The woman looked ashamed at being called out. “Catra is a loyal member of the Pack, and the pack protects everyone on this territory. It’s largely due to her that there haven’t been any attacks in the last few weeks.”

“I-- I’m so sorry, your highness. Of course, I--” The woman stammered. 

Thankfully, she was spared from further embarrassment when the two wolves on duty reported in. One came ahead of the other, and gave a report that everything was quiet. 

The shifts were changed. One large black wolf and one brown-gray older fellow took their place as watch over the town. 

Catra tuned them out. She didn’t need to distract herself with all the pleasantries that were exchanged between the pack princess and the town elder. Instead, she watched the woods, thinking about her bet with Adora. 

Something caught her eye. By the time she had shifted her focus to see it, it was gone. Searching with more purpose now, she looked harder at the darkened shapes beyond the trees. 

She heard a slight inhale from the treeline. She hardly had time to register the simple act before a projectile was blowing right towards her group, and she reacted quicker than light to snatch it out of the air. Her senses began to catch up to her at the same moment that all the other wolves realized what had just happened. 

“They’re here!” She announced, throwing the blue dart onto the dirt and charging the woods where it had come from. 

Chaos erupted as the werewolves launched an immediate counter attack, two more darts shooting past them as they weaved around, protecting the civilians. Growls sounded out and torches were lit, the people shouted as they either retreated or grabbed their weapons. 

“Vampires, in the trees!”

“They have darts!”

“Get these people out of here!”

“Don’t let them escape!” The orders came quickly. 

Catra was the quickest among all of them, already pinning down one vampire who had aimed at her before the rest of the wolves had even arrived on the scene. She could hear two others retreating through the woods after their failed attempt at a surprise attack. The one she held was a young man, someone Catra didn’t recognize. It seemed as though he was only freshly changed into a vampire, but he certainly had that smell about him. His new inexperience showed. In one hand he had a blow dart tool, probably with the intent to knock someone out on contact. She was quick to knock it away from him, restraining his hands together while he struggled against her strength. 

Glimmer appeared right behind her, along with another white werewolf with gray streaks that towered over both of them. 

“Keep him restrained, I’m going after the others!” Catra quickly ordered, before she dashed away. 

“Catra, wait!” Glimmer called out, but she was already gone. 

The werewolves were too slow compared to her. They couldn’t keep up with vampiric speed, which meant she was the only person for the job. The wolves put their noses to the air and the ground in an effort to track down the intruders, but Catra was already peeling off too fast for them. She had already lost track of one of them off to the North somewhere, but the other she quickly caught up with. She leapt forward with ferocity and tackled him to the ground. She could hear the wolves howling all around her, rallying up for a big hunt as they pursued the final aggressor. 

She wasn’t used to fighting vampires in a while. His speed almost matched her own, and he quickly pushed himself upwards with enough force to send them both flying, but Catra retained her grip on him, even as they sailed upwards in a perfect arch that ended with them landing flipped over, crushing Catra. It knocked the wind out of her but she was prepared to keep her grip all the same. 

The man kicked his legs up into the air, and found his footing behind their heads, then flipped himself upright and in the process flinging Catra away from him. She skidded away on the cold earth, catching herself by digging her talons into the dirt and dragging long lines. When she regained herself, she found him fleeing again rather than fighting. She leapt high up in the air, this time sailing right over him with ease, to block him off as she landed directly in his path. He tried to skid to a halt and change directions, but quickly slid under Catra’s legs, knocking her out on the ground once again as she fell forward. He took off once more, but this time the werewolves had finally caught up to them, and two surrounded his only exit, pinning him between them and Catra. They snarled and peeled back their lips to show their vicious teeth as they growled at him. When he turned around, he was met with Catra, who hissed at him with her own fangs at the ready. 

Without any way to escape, he growled at his misfortune and put his hands up in surrender. 

“You’re a filthy traitor to your kind.” He spat at Catra as the werewolves seized him to take prisoner.

“And you’re a butt face.” She snapped back at him. 

“It doesn’t matter. You're not the one we came for.”

Catra’s eyes widened in shock as she processed what he said, then she turned around and ran back to the edge of town where it all started. 

“Glimmer!” She called out desperately, searching for the bright pink fur among the calming chaos. With two vampires apprehended and one at large, it seemed as though the last one had retreated far away by now. All that was left was to pick up the pieces. 

“ _Glimmer!_ ” Catra called out in the night, her voice reaching levels of hopeless desperation. 

“Catra, I’m here!” Glimmer’s voice responded as she came running up to meet her girlfriend, panic on her face. “What’s wrong, are you hurt?” Catra sighed in relief, running a hand through her hair. 

“Oh thank stars.” She mumbled. “They came to get a target, I was worried it was you.” She breathed in relief. Glimmer flicked her ears around and took in the scene. 

“Well they clearly failed.” She concluded. “I'm still here, thanks to you. And if they didn't get the Princess, I don't know who else they could have been after.”

The princess looked over the two prisoners that were given to the town jail, made sure that nobody had gone missing. Despite the surprise, everything had gone quite well for them. Catra stayed close to Glimmer’s side for the rest of the night, keeping an extra eye on any suspicious movements. 

“Okay, we still have one more town to hit.” Glimmer ordered her pack as they moved out of the town and towards their next target. “We need to hurry, there could be more vampires out there.” They took off running through the woods, Catra easily keeping pace with them as they careened down the hills. 

“Hey, still worried about beating Adora back?” Glimmer winked at Catra as they ran off together. Catra scoffed. 

“Let’s just hope that Adora’s team is having a better time than we are tonight.”

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora was a swift hunter, and a fine werewolf in her element. She led the team of five around the outer edge of the perimeter, searching for any signs of anything out of place. She moved quickly, but was careful enough to not miss anything. Her golden fur shone brightest under the light of the moon as she sniffed the ground in determination. 

On her left, was the forest she now called home. To her right, a long stretch of open valley with nothing but grass separating the Pack grounds from the Crimson Horde. This was where the two territories were closest to bordering, and she was extra cautious. If anyone were to go from the horde to Bright Moon, this would be the part of their borders that they would cross. 

She ran along at a pace on four legs, her larger of the two quadrupedal forms. She was the tallest and strongest of all the wolves in her party, all wide shoulders and long arms compared to the other four members of the pack that were with her. 

With her were Owen, a light blonde wolf; Tasha, a skinny and light gray wolf; Nadia, a guard to the alphas of the pack; and Drew, the youngest member. He was still just a kid, only just barely cleared for field duty with the big guys, and eager to prove himself. At times he took issue with Adora’s authority over the party, since he had been around longer than Adora had. But his small size and brown-gray coat made him easily identifiable as the smallest one present. Nadia tried to steer him away from conflict within the pack, seeing promise in him as a Hunter for the pack, which Adora was immensely grateful for. 

She slowed down her run to a trot as they approached the place where the two borders were closest. The grass was tall, up to her elbows, and looked across no man’s land between the two regions. She had once walked through that same field to enter the woods on the night that she was meant to become a vampire, when she was instructed to find the Tails town within the pack territory. 

Now, she was more alert to any changes. Her ears pointed forward as her eyes scanned over the valley, overly cautious of any movement. The others did the same. As the rest of the pack had let their guard down when nothing had happened over the last week, Adora remained vigilant and worried. She wanted so desperately to protect this new life that she had built for herself and the people she loved. 

But, once again sensing nothing distressing, she pressed onwards, following the sweeping curve of their territory. 

“I smell vampire!” Drew declared with urgency. Adora sighed. 

“Yes Drew. We’re on the edge of the vampire territory, and the wind is coming from the East off the mountains. It’s bringing the vampire smell with it.” She explained not for the first time. The rest of the party took Adora’s stance, and calmly disregarded the warning, much to the annoyance of young Drew. 

As they moved on, the landscape changed. The forest still remained on their left as they circled counter-clockwise around their border, but to their left the land rose up in sheer cliffs that would become mountains further up North, not unlike the mountain path that Adora had jumped off of when she was running away from Glimmer and Bow when they first met. Still, she bent her long, thick neck upwards to see if there was any movement up on the unstable sandy edges of the rising landmarks, and again found nothing. She hoped that it would remain that way. For the safety of the pack, and so she could beat Catra at their race back to Bright Moon. 

“We’re making good time.” Adora commented, noticing the hour of the night and seeing that they were halfway done with their journey. “Maybe we can get back to Bright Moon early.” 

Ahead, she heard the sound of babbling water in a stream that crossed through the border. It was a small, soft trickle, one that would soon be frozen up completely once the cold weather really decided to come. Adora was surprised that there was still some running water left, and slowed down next to the stream before jumping over. 

She bent down and lapped her tongue in the ice-cold water, pure refreshment embracing her senses after her running around. The water splashed around her muzzle and teeth, some of it sliding back down to its source as she thirstily lapped some more. The others followed suit as they pleased while they stopped for a short break. 

If Adora listened closely, she could hear the strained cracking of ice as it froze and expanded near the banks of the small stream, a tiny sound that signaled winter was coming. Her breath became visible as she huffed and panted at the water’s edge, though slightly smaller now that her core temperature was lower with the drink. She paused to stretch out her back, extending her front paws as far as she could, her dark claws scratching the hardened dirt slightly. 

When she opened her eyes from her stretch, she saw a curious object in front of her that wasn’t there a second ago. There was a blue dart with a feathery, fuzzy end sticking out of the earth where her head was a moment ago. Adora gasped. 

“Ambush!” She cried, jumping into action. The others quickly became alert, and ran for the cover of the trees to the left where they would have more protection. 

Now that they were aware of the sneak attack, the vampires that meant to fight them made themselves known, coming out of the shadows as they slid down the rocky terrain towards the group. Adora counted at least four of them, and rushed to get her crew out of harm’s way. 

“Retreat to the castle!” Adora ordered quickly as they ran through thicker and older growth of woodland towards home. Another dart whizzed past her ear and hit a tree trunk right ahead of her as she leapt around in a serpentine pattern. She quickly counted the werewolves around her to make sure they hadn’t gotten anybody as she took up the rear. One, two, three…

Adora’s paws stopped immediately and she skidded to a halt, spinning slightly to check behind her. Sure enough, she heard the sound of a canine growling nearby the tall shadow of a vampire. She raced back without a second thought, and leapt over Drew’s smaller body, straight into the attacker that he was facing. She snarled as he pounced, claws forward and made solid contact first with the vampire, then with the ground as they both fell. The vampire cried out in shock and pain, unable to maneuver himself free under the weight of the massive yellow wolf that had brought him down. But soon another vampire rushed to his aid much the same way Adora had for her friend, and kicked her so hard in the ribs that she went flying until she hit a tree trunk. Something cracked painfully when she breathed in, but she still pushed herself up. She rushed forward and grabbed Drew by his neck in her mouth, dragging him away from the pair of vampires and running off. 

But their detour had cost them. While two were behind them, two more appeared in front of them, cutting off their exit. She figured this out when she caught up with Tasha, Owen, and Nadia, who were cornered and fighting off a man and a woman before they were surrounded. Adora dropped Drew from her mouth, but still stood protectively over him while the two vampires behind her caught up. They were surrounded and evenly matched. 

Adora braced herself for a fight, her hackles raising threateningly as she joined the chorus of growling from the other werewolves. She tried to watch all of them at once, tried to see which one was the biggest threat, but they all had reloaded their dart guns. Before the woman could bring the tube to her lips, Adora launched herself at her torso, biting down on the tool with her powerful teeth, and crushing part of the vampire’s hand in the same force. But she couldn’t stop to restrain or chase her off, she was already leaping away to the person at her right, and went for a similar move, but he anticipated it and leapt backwards out of range. Nadia collided with another person who was about to target Adora from behind, and the dart ended up flying up into the branches, way off course. 

Adora was far too overwhelmed with all the vampires and wolves around her to keep track of where everyone was, and could only focus on her own battles. She chomped down on the leg of the one who avoided her, pulling backwards with all her strength until he was dragged flat on his back and prone, at which point Nadia pounced onto his rib cage and targeted his dart gun. 

When she detached from the leg, she was tackled to the ground from behind, and her chest hit the hard forest floor painfully, knocking the wind out of her. She quickly tried to roll and get her legs back under her, but the pain in her ribs was only worsened by the vice-like grip her attacker’s arms restrained her in. She looked around desperately for a way out, when she felt one of the arms release her while the other attempted to hold her on its own. She wrenched herself free and immediately spun around to tackle him, her paws forcing his shoulders down to the ground. 

She looked into his eyes, and recognized that he had no dart blower. That’s when she felt a light pinch in her shoulder, no lighter than a mosquito bite. Her eyes widened in fear as her grip loosened. She turned her head to see a dart, balled up in the fist of the vampire, struck into her shoulder. It was the same arm that had released her, was in order to grab a spare dart and stab her with it. 

Blackness started to fog the edges of her vision, but she fought it. Her head grew heavy with dizziness and her ribcage ached with stabbing pain on each labored breath, Adora struggled to simply stay conscious much less keep fighting. The world swayed back and forth in her vision, and she tried to snarl back her lips, but her face was numb. 

Adora felt her body collide with the cold, hard dirt beneath her just before her vision faded to complete blackness. 

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


It was great fortune that there were no attacks made on the other two villages that Glimmer and Catra visited that night. Glimmer insisted on re-checking the first one they had been to once they finished their rounds, but found it all quiet. For some reason, the vampires only attacked the second village, the farmers. Catra was sure to voice her concerns that they were being followed leading up to the sneak attack, which were noted. 

The race home was the last thing on Catras mind when they finally made their way back to Bright Moon. It had been a close call, she didn’t want to think about how much closer it could have been if she hadn’t been there. Not to mention, she kept thinking of how cool it looked when she snatched a blow dart right out of the air. She couldn’t wait to tell Adora about it. 

When they came to the castle, the tired members of their group returning from their long guard shift were the first to go off to bed. Glimmer and Catra, however, went to report to the Alpha about what had happened. She would need to know about this attack against the Princess. 

When they entered the throne room, also a communal area that many would pass through, it was more crowded than usual. People seemed active, worried even. Angella was speaking with a small group, and her face looked outright distraught. Her face was a tortured expression of worry and sadness, she even bit her nails as she nodded along to what the group told her. 

“Isn’t that Tasha?” Glimmer realized. “Crap, she was in Adora’s group, wasn’t she? That means she beat us.” Catra didn’t respond. She could tell something was wrong, she just couldn’t tell how bad it was yet.

Catra and Glimmer stepped forward into the center of the room, towards Queen. As they did, the people they passed, both human and wolf forms alike, stopped their conversations and looked anxiously at them, stepping aside to make room for them to pass. It instantly set Catra’s already frayed nerves on edge, as a loud hush came over the echoing chamber. Eventually, even those who were informing the Queen fell silent as they watched Glimmer and Catra with quite anticipation, worry and sympathy etched in their faces. 

Angella swallowed nervously, her hands wringing each other in front of her as she struggled with where to begin. Catra had never seen the Alpha so lost, and it only scared her more. 

Adora’s whole squad was here. Drew was being doted on by his mother, as she checked him over and licked his fur clean. In fact, all four of them looked beat and bloodied.

“Tasha. Nadia, Drew, Owen.” Glimmer greeted each of them nervously. Her mental checklist of the scouting party fell one short. “W-where’s Adora?”

Nobody answered. The room was silent enough to hear a pin drop. Catra felt a chill run along her spine. 

“Guys?” Glimmer asked again, her ears turning backward anxiously. “Where’s Adora?”

A moment of silence passed. 

“Nobody saw it coming, she tried to get all of us out--” Nadia started,

“Where is she?” Catra burst out, her voice louder than was necessary, cutting her off. 

“They knocked us all out, by the time we--”

“ _ Where is Adora?!” _ Catra demanded again, shouting in desperation. 

“Catra, please,” Angella tried to calm her down. 

“ _ Where is she?!” _ Catra shouted, suddenly reaching out for Nadia’s scruff violently. 

“Catra!” Glimmer tried to pull her back, but she shook the dark-furred wolf as her bare fangs came out, and she continued to repeat herself. 

“ _ Tell me where she is! What happened?! Where is Adora?!” _ She growled, her shrieks of terror echoing loudly in the large hall, reverberating on the high glass ceilings. 

“She was taken!” Nadia tried to explain, her tail between her legs. Glimmer still tried to peel her off of the poor guard. 

“ _ How could this happen?! How could you lose her?!” _ Catra screamed. Glimmer finally pulled her away, shoving her back several feet as Catra regained her balance, the murderous look never leaving her split eyes. 

“Catra!” Glimmer again tried to appeal to her, to get her to calm down, to no use. 

Catra extended her black talons and snarled, launching herself again at the group which had cost them Adora. She flew through the air towards Nadia, but was intercepted by a massive blur of pink. Glimmer wrapped her long arms around the vampire in a steady grip as they hit to the floor, and had to use all her strength to contain the violent outburst. 

Catra squirmed and writhed to get free, but her strength was no match against’ a werewolf, especially Glimmer. She didn’t want to hurt her. She hissed and twisted around, all while continuing her verbal assault. 

“ _ How could you let this happen!? Where is Adora! How could you possibly lose her! What do you mean she was taken! Where is she!?” _

Everyone else inched away from her in fear, Glimmer using all her power to restrain the force of her rage and pain. 

“We’ll get her back!” Glimmer promised, her own heart breaking. “Catra, please!” Tears appeared in her canine eyes.

Catra was no werewolf, but she howled in agony at the idea of losing Adora. She sobbed uncontrollably, in front of everyone, as she continued to try and get free. 

Losing Adora wasn’t an option, to her. She had given up her breathing life for Adora. She had abandoned her home for Adora. Adora and Glimmer, they helped her change for the better. 

Not only was she gone, but she was with the most vile, evil person on the planet. The person that haunted her memories, the only person in Etheria she had ever really feared. She was being held prisoner, or worse, tortured by Shadow Weaver. There was no worse fate, Catra thought. And nobody deserved it, but least of all Adora. What horrible things would Shadow Weaver do to her perfect little soldier who defected? What nightmares could she unleash on Adora once she learned that she had been turned into a werewolf? 

Catra collapsed in on herself in a pile of broken sobs, still slashing her claws at anyone who was within reach that wasn’t Glimmer. How could this happen? How could she let this happen?

  
  
  
  


***************

  
  
  
  


Adora knew without opening her eyes that something was very wrong. From the way her environment clanked and hissed with mechanical sounds in darkness, to the way that she felt in her own body, startled to feel her human form flexing numb fingers and toes. She had become so accustomed to shape shifting, so used to moving around on four legs with a tail, that suddenly waking up in her human form without remembering to make the conscious shift back was alarming. 

She was still largely numb, and could only barely wiggle as she was unable to feel her skin. Although, she realized, that could also be in part due to the restraints at her wrists and ankles, even a large belt over her chest and knees, that held her in place to a metal table. She wished for her strength and struggled to fight off the anesthesia, but she was trapped and out of her element, her mind still foggy. All she knew as she woke up was that she could hear a sound, like rolling wheels, and it echoed off the metal walls in a tight space. The table lightly vibrated against her back uncomfortably.

She opened her eyes eventually, and immediately recognized where she was. The flickering lights in darkened corridors, the stink of rot and moths, she could even taste the bland, artificial food in the air. She gasped and struggled again with new strength from her panic, as she realized she was in the heart of the Crimson Horde. 

The table she was strapped to was being wheeled through long hallways, pushed by someone behind her she couldn’t see, and she couldn’t tell where in the Crimson Horde she was just from the look of the ceiling. She blinked hard to erase the black spots that were still on the edges of her vision, and her breathing quickened. 

“Wh-where am I?” She cried out weakly, still struggling. “Where are you taking me?”

“Shut up, mutt.” The vampire behind her hissed, uninterested in the thoughts of a traitor. Adora’s arms ached with her attempts to rip herself free, but still they held her in place against the table. 

The next thing she knew, the bottom of the table, where her feet were, bumped into something harshly, and shoved past a heavy door. The high-arched ceilings lit with candles immediately told Adora where she was, and her heart almost stopped with fear. She was in Shadow Weaver’s chamber. 

She hadn’t seen the room in so long, but it still had the same effect on her. She and Catra used to be brought here for their unique punishments if they were ever anything but perfect. With no need for a bed, the elder vampire instead used her personal space for dark experiments, in both science and magic. For hundreds of years, she had attempted to learn more about the secrets of Etheria and how it’s magic worked, by ripping the magic out of poorer creatures and experimenting on it to find its true nature. Along the way, she found many unique practices that would benefit the horde, like growing artificial nutrition. However more commonly, it was ways of cruelty that she sought. Even from when they were children, Shadow Weaver wanted power. 

Adora could still remember getting pulled out of her bunk and sent to the chamber when Shadow Weaver discovered she skipped class because she felt sick. The way that she had threatened her with destructive red bolts of energy, reminding young Adora that she lived here by Shadow Weaver’s choice. And if she was good, she wouldn’t have to feel the wrath of that sour static. 

It wasn’t until later, when she and Catra were both safely far away in Bright Moon, that Catra would ever open up and reveal that for Adora it was held back and used as a warning. For Catra, it was much worse. She would leave this chamber limping sometimes. Catra always thought that Adora had known, she had to have seen the signs. But she was always somewhat slow in the head.

Now that Adora had not only defected but allowed herself to become a werewolf, to openly defy her commander and turn her back against the whole horde, she doubted that Shadow Weaver would be holding back any more. 

What manner of experimental evil would she unleash on Adora as punishment for turning Wolf? 

Her panic rose with each second she was left alone, the person who had wheeled her here having left as soon as she was deposited. She bruised her body fighting against the restraints, her increased heart rate quickly expelling the numbness from her body as she began to sweat in fear. 

But she was not left alone for long, and the door opened once again. Someone walked in, without making a sound. Adora could tell who it was just by the way the temperature in the air dropped five degrees.

“Who’s there?” Adora asked nervously, but she already knew the answer. 

Suddenly, she was startled when the table she was on ratchetted and cranked, and it turned downwards so that Adora could see more of the room as she was at an almost-upward angle. Once it was in position, the person behind her, responsible for the change, came around to reveal herself.

Shadow Weaver’s expression was unreadable as always beneath her mask, but Adora noticed that there was a deep crack running through the ceramic that went from top to bottom diagonally, as though from a great struggle. Just seeing the horrid purple and red tones of her ancient robes, framed by long black hair that moved like ropes in the water, made Adora gasp and goosebumps appear over her whole torso. 

She seemed… tired. Almost to the point of apathetic delirium as she sloppily moved around. Her shoulders hunched up and her head hung low. Adora felt a chill run up her spine as the sweat ran down her body, and Shadow Weaver approached her, reaching out a clawed, gray hand. Adora shrunk away as much as she could, wincing in fear as though in pain, but unable to avoid the contact that Shadow Weaver initiated. Her boney fingers were delicate and gentle along Adora’s jaw, cold as stone. Adora felt as though she were touching a corpse. 

“Adora, how good it is to see you again.” Shadow Weaver rasped dryly. Adora was shocked and how genuine she sounded. She had expected torture, but it seemed like Shadow Weaver was back on the same wagon that had raise Adora, one where she could never lay a finger on her star pupil. 

“Huh?” 

“But of course, my dear.” Shadow Weaver said so slowly to draw the words out. “You must be so frightened. You’ve been away from home for so long now… But it’s alright, dear. Soon everything will be back to normal.”

“What are you talking about?” Adora’s voice warbled only just slightly in fear. She still found it hard to speak out against her old commander. Obviously the witch still held some power over her. “I’m not coming back to the Crimson Horde, Shadow Weaver.” She tried to say confidently. She hoped it sounded better than she thought. “I’m going to help the Bright Moon pack, and I won’t stop until I’ve taken down the Horde. I’m going to end this reign of terror and put a stop to all this violence at the hands of the vampires!” As she spoke, she continued to pull on the belts and chains around her arms, clacking on the table slightly. 

Shadow Weaver just shook her head, looking sad. 

“Tsk tsk tsk…” She could hear the frown in her voice. “Now now Adora, this is what I’m talking about. You simply aren’t yourself anymore. But that’s alright, I’m here to fix everything. I can fix you.” 

Then, the door opened, and another table was wheeled in, with a dark figure restrained on top of it. There were far more chains wrapped around the person under a thin sheet, and when the table was in position, Shadow Weaver seemed delighted. 

"Ah, at last!" She chirped, turning to the new table as it's deliverer hastily exited.

“Do not fear, my precious Adora.” She said happily. “I will have you under my control again soon. No matter what the cost.” 

She cranked the other table up as well, and Adora almost had a heart attack, her confidence vanishing her when she saw a face she had never seen before, but instantly recognized as Lord Hordak.

The captive elder vampire was chained much more than she was, and had some sort of muzzle covering his mouth and nose. His pale face, the only part of him that could be seen under the sheet that ended at his neck, was stained with blood. He looked so broken and tattered that Adora wondered if he was a ghost, or even a dead body. Even as she watched, his face seemed unconscious and his eyes would not open, his head only supported upright by another chain around his forehead. Vampires have no heartbeat and no need to breathe air, so Adora couldn’t tell if he was still alive or not. By all her senses, his body sat there unmoving and quiet as a dead corpse. 

So it was true. Shadow Weaver had somehow possessed some power of defeating the oldest and most powerful, evil being in the whole world in her mad quest for power. Her heart sank realizing that even if she could escape, there was no way she could take down someone so powerful. Her only hope was that her pack, her girlfriends, would be able to come to her rescue. And yet, another part of her wished they wouldn’t come, wouldn’t risk themselves or put the pack in danger of such madness and torture. 

Shadow Weaver glided out of view for just a short moment, but Adora could hear her tinkering amongst her tools as they clacked together when she searched for something. 

_ Wait. Why would she bring Hordak in here? _ Adora suddenly realized. Sweat dripped on her brow in her fear.  _ How is she going to get me under her control, does it have to do with him? Is this some sort of torture? _ She shook against her restraints. 

When Shadow Weaver appeared again, she went up to Hordak, or perhaps to Hordak’s body, with a syringe that had a long, empty vial. 

“Soon, this will all be a distant memory.” Shadow Weaver cooed calmly to herself. “Perhaps one day we can all laugh about it… By this time tomorrow, you will wonder how you ever could have thought such silly things. About those stupid tails, and everything else.” She continued in a sickly slow and sweet voice that made Adora’s skin crawl. 

Shadow Weaver put the needle in Hordak’s neck. He finally reacted, if only to somewhat groan in recognition of the needle in his neck, as Shadow Weaver slowly drew out his blood into the vial. 

“What are you doing?” Adora demanded fearfully. Shadow Weaver filled the vial, then withdrew the needle from Hordak’s neck. Then she placed it aside, and prepared another one, drawing even more from Hordak. 

“Don’t worry, Adora. You see, I would do anything for you. I will have you back under control soon enough. Then things will be right. I don’t care what it takes. I’ll get you back under my control, no matter what.” She mumbled, somewhat repeating herself, but still not giving any idea to Adora about what she was doing. The second vial was full, and she started in on a third. Adora doubted that a third vial would be obtainable by how beaten and dry Hordak looked, but she stabbed his neck with precision just like the other two. 

Adora pulled so hard against her bindings that she thought she might break them, but her strength still hadn't fully returned. She would break her own bones before she broke those shackles. Her heart raced and her breathing quickened in panic, realizing not only how trapped she was, but that she was running out of time to escape or come up with a plan. If only Catra were here, she was smarter than Adora. Or if Glimmer were here to use her special connection with the Moon to obliterate anything in her path, even if it was during daytime. She had no idea how long she had been out, but doubted it was still night with how late it was when she was captured. 

She pulled against the chains and belts like her life depended on it, and she was certain that in this case it did. Soon Shadow Weaver finished off the third vial of blood, and she turned back to Adora, appearing to be done with Hordak for now. She stepped closer to Adora slowly, still holding the last syringe as though to use it, the other two held in her other hand. Adora’s eyes widened as she realized what her plan was. 

She flinched away as much as she could while being held down when Shadow Weaver grabbed her shirt sleeve without hesitation. In one simple movement, she tore away at the red and black checked material, discarding it to expose Adora’s bruised but muscled arm. She inserted the needle in Adora’s skin, and she couldn’t move away to fight it, couldn’t squirm or muscle or run away. She winced as it pinched her, panicked at what was happening and useless to stop it. 

“Please, stop!” Adora begged, out of options. Hordak’s blood was so dark it was almost black, and she could see her veins getting dark as it entered her system. “Don’t do this!” She cried, even though it was already too late. The first syringe was already emptied, and Shadow Weaver wasted no time in moving from the empty one to the next, pumping her full of the elder vampire’s blood. 

“Ssshhh, it’s alright Adora.” Shadow Weaver said a bit more impatiently, eager to be done and have Adora back. The second vial seemed to empty quicker than the first, or maybe Adora was losing her mind. She felt a burning sensation across her arm, as though it were lit on fire, and the sensation slowly crawled up her shoulder and down to her fingertips. She groaned in pain, tears welling in her eyes. 

The further the pain spread, the more blinding it became. Her groans became shouts of terror, and wails of agony as her blood was violated by the foreign blood, her body contracting in repulsion. Her muscles seized up painfully tight, and she thought she might snap in half from all the tension she felt. She squeezed her eyes shut and struggled to breathe, her chest spasming as the effect of the blood spread like a poison. She choked and sputtered as her whole body was engulfed in flame, screaming in agony as it consumed her. 

She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t see. She needed something, she didn’t know what. It was a thousand times worse than when she was first bitten to become a werewolf, worse than when she thought she could swallow the sun whole. 

_ Perhaps if I… _ Adora was already trying to shape shift before she could even finish her thought. She inhaled through her nose painfully, her muscles screaming in passionate anguish at the simple movement, tried to ground herself as Angella and the others had taught her. Her hair stood up on end all over her body, usually the first sign before it grows out long and coarse. But there, her shift stopped, halted as though she couldn’t pass some barrier that had never been there before. She tried harder, pushing herself to become a wolf, any form at all, but she remained tied in place, unable to change her form. She tried again and again, trying to force herself past whatever force was blocking her, but the poison was too strong, it prevented her from generating enough energy or focus to change, quickly exhausting her and poisoning her abilities. 

Adora’s vision started to turn red, and she wondered if her eyes were bleeding, it felt too painful to keep them open too long. She howled in pain, part human and part canine sounding as she strained every cell in her body against the poison that crawled inside her. She felt it burn through her form like lava, helpless to even move as badly as she wanted to curl up in the fetal position and clutch her skull in agony. Her body spasmed uncontrollably, rattling the table she was chained to. All her muscles contracted painfully, past their limit of what she could do without breaking, and felt every part of her burn inside and out. Her mind became a haze, clouded with pain and blood: She could smell it, taste it, even her vision was getting redder, pulsing at the edges of her vision, creeping inward with each beat of her frantic heart. She couldn’t think straight, couldn’t even comprehend the amount of pain that she was in, couldn’t even think enough to think that she would rather die, or that she would rather not be in pain. Her whole world, her whole existence, was pure unfiltered agony across every fiber of her being. She couldn’t fight against it, she had already lost.

She was only vaguely aware through the curtain of torment that Shadow Weaver was touching her face again, only because her hand was deathly cold against the heat that tore her body apart molecule by molecule. The witch gently brushed loose hair behind Adora's ear for her. She was in so much blinding agony that she couldn’t see, couldn’t remember her own name as she felt her life fade. Her wolf side had abandoned her, her pack was in danger, and she was alone with only torment.

“Sshh, It’s alright Adora,” Shadow Weaver said soothingly, but Adora was just more repulsed by it. “Everything will be okay soon enough.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the support and kind comments. I've been dealing with the grief of losing my mother, but writing has finally helped me escape my own head a bit.   
> Remember to check out art of kace's new blog on tumblr: kaereth.tumblr.com. You can still find all the art for this AU on the old blog as well. Support Kace!   
> Comments water my crops and feed my family so consider leaving your thoughts. Whenever I update I refresh my inbox constantly, and the validation gives me enough serotonin to get through my dumb day job at the store.   
> Sorry for the cliff hanger. Don't forget to stay hydrated!

**Author's Note:**

> Again, please check out the amazing art that inspired this AU:  
> shorturl.at/rtyIJ  
> shorturl.at/dfuO2
> 
> And of course the blog of the artist: artofkace.tumblr.com. 
> 
> Work was made with permission of artofkace.
> 
> To be continued!


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